Mobile, Social Media Will Increasingly Fall Prey To Cybercrime: Symantec

The Norton Cyber Crime Report stated how India suffered losses to the tune of $8 billion in 2011 due to cybercrimes  This ridiculously large figure should give one an idea about what we stand to lose if we don’t fight cybercrime. One important thing to point out here is that these cybercrimes were committed only via the web. So, can you imagine what the losses will be like if the mobile and social media fall prey to cybercrimes too?

Symantec Corporation’s Norton Cyber Crime Report, 2012 states that both mobile and social media platforms will fall prey to cyber attacks.

According to statistics, Indian teens are spending about 86% of their time on social media. The use of mobile phones and mobile internet is only on the rise in the country with 7 out of 10 users having access to internet on the go. This increased usage pattern is what makes people susceptible to risk and cybercrimes where users stand to lose personal data, identities and financial information + finances among other things.

These predictions are made on basis of past experiences as well as an acute comprehension of threats and cyber security trends. David Hall, regional consumer product marketing manager (Asia-Pacific), Norton by Symantec, said, “Many of us at Symantec and Norton have been putting our heads together to predict some of what we can expect to see in 2013. Of the predictions we have come up with, I want to draw your attention in particular to two –– the likelihood that cyber terrorism will get highly personal as attacks focus on individuals or minority groups and the possibility that new electronic payment methods could be vulnerable to hacks and breaches.”

 These are the events that could lead to an increase in cybercrimes:

• Nations, government bodies, non-government organisations will try to out-do one another and display their cyber power by limiting another’s internet systems and plaguing it with viruses/malware/etc.
• Madware (mobile adware) be will be on the rise. This will enter a mobile phone when an app is downloaded and will hamper the working of the phone, interrupt browser settings, make changes to notification bars, add/delete icons, etc.
• Advertisements on mobile phone apps can legally accumulate an individual’s location data. Madware will use this legitimate advertising medium to sneak into people’s phones and mess them up. Even today, 31% Indians say they have received unsolicited messages/links that ask them to respond in some way or the other.

 Adding to the woe is the truth that not just mobiles but even cloud services will be affected and will be susceptible to madware, cybercrime attacks. Given that mobile technology is going to grow and the use of mobiles is going to increase, one can be sure of the fact that cybercrimes will only get more sophisticated. Tough times ahead!

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Image Courtesy |  techistan

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