5 things about Rio Olympics cybersecurity your boss wants to know
With just three more days to go for the international multi-sport event – 2016 Summer Olympics officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, and commonly known as Rio 2016 to be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. More than 10,500 athletes from 206 nations are gearing up to participate in this extravaganza and will be competing for the coveted gold medal. As the whole world gears up for this mega event, so are cyber criminals. Rio Olympics Cybersecurity has become the talk of the town. Previously Pokemon Go and Euro 2016 made headlines for being a security nightmare for businesses and consumers.
The Olympics have become a beacon for cyber criminals, said Samir Kapuria, Senior Vice President with security firm Symantec. A great deal of money is spent on the international event, so hackers naturally want a slice of the pie, he added.Bigger the event, more it is likely to attract the attention of hackers who have malicious intent. Previously it was reported that during the 2012 Olympics more than 166 million security related activities including half a dozen major attacks were witnessed by the London Organizing Committee. Meanwhile, Japan is already gearing up its cybersecurity initiatives by investing $190 million for the sole purpose of hiring cybersecurity professionals way ahead of the 2020 Games. When it comes to spending money, it has been projected that the total cost of Rio Olympics will exceed $12 billion. And it’s not the host country that will be spending big – Fans of the mega-sport event will be spending millions on the tickets, travel, and accommodations. On the other hand, businesses and sponsors like Omega, Samsung, Coca-Cola, Visa and several others will be shelling out hundreds of millions into marketing themselves during the entire event. When so much of money is involved, it’s no surprise that cyber-criminals are rallying themselves for the big party ahead. Today we are listing down 5 things about Rio Olympics Cybersecurity that your boss would love to know.
1. Brazil is a known hub for cybercrime
Foreign Affairs listed Brazil to be at the epicenter of a global cyber crime wave. In terms of online banking fraud and financial malware, Brazil ranks second worldwide. In 2014, Brazil lost more than $8 billion to internet crime, and the losses did not abate in 2015. The top economic crime in the country is cyber crime and it ranks fourth on the economic crimes chart in the rest of the world. The reputation of the host country is such that it makes Rio Olympics cybersecurity one of the major concerns for the event.“Brazilian cyber criminals are not only creative but also bold. There’s a general feeling of impunity…the laws are very general, there aren’t many of them and their bite isn’t strong. Cyber criminals don’t even bother hiding, they flaunt their activities,” said Limor Kessem, Executive Security Advisor at IBM Security.