World Cup 2010 cyber alert issued
The 2010 football World Cup is just around the corner and many are likely to get caught up in a scramble for tickets. The football fever, coupled with the increased availability of Internet connectivity in South Africa, has led Symantec to predict a rise in World Cup-related spam and phishing attacks as the groups and fixtures for the event are announced.
“There will, without a doubt, be a dramatic upsurge in cybercrime once South Africa starts to experience faster broadband speeds and cheaper broadband prices. The time to start preparing for this is now,” says Gordon Love, Regional Director for Africa at Symantec.
High-profile sporting events are one of the most abused opportunities for cybercriminals to exploit fans’ hunger for tickets with increased spam and phishing activity.
“As fans see the World Cup fixtures confirmed, tickets will sell like hot cakes. Supporters who struggle to secure them are likely to take risks and purchase tickets through unauthorised channels or believe the promises of unsolicited emails,” Love continued.
“This can not only land fans with useless counterfeit tickets, but also lead to the theft of their credit card details and fund organised crime. It is important that fans remain vigilant, only visit legitimate sites and secure tickets through authorised channels, no matter what is offered to them. If it looks too good to be true, it probably is,” Love concluded.
Symantec has developed the following best practice steps which should help consumers avoid falling for online scams.
Firstly, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Many criminals use extravagant promises to lure victims into clicking through to malicious sites and divulging personal information.
Secondly, never click on links from emails, as these can contain viruses or Trojans, or direct users to infected websites
Finally, buy only from FIFA-registered sellers. FIFA has a strict code of conduct for all outlets and these are the only places fans should buy tickets.
2010 cyber alert – discussion
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