Nearly two-thirds of countries that participated in the assessment relate to acts of fraud or phishing to retrieve your personal data.
The hackers took advantage of the chaos caused by the pandemic Covid-19. Cyber attacks have increased significantly during this period in fifty countries, with more and more governments and health institutions targeted, was alerted on Tuesday by Interpol.
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Over the period from January to April, the international police cooperation organisation, based in Lyon, has detected nearly 907 000 spam, 737 incidents caused by malware and 48 000 URL links harmful, “all linked to the coronavirus”.
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The attacks are increasing at an “alarming rate”
These data have been collected by Interpol during a survey conducted between April and may from its 194 member countries. 48 countries responded, of which 42% in Europe, 19% Asia, 17% Africa, 12% in America and 10% in the Middle East. The “private partners”, such as companies specializing in security, have also provided information.
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“The criminals are in the process of developing and enhancing their attacks at an alarming rate, exploiting the fear and uncertainty caused by the economic and social situation is unstable because of the Covid-19”, said in a statement the secretary-general of Interpol Jürgen Stock.
“The growing dependence in the world to the web also creates new opportunities (for attacks), with many businesses and individuals not ensuring that their (capacity of) defence (in-line) are up to date”, he stressed.
Scam and phishing
Several types of attacks have been identified. Nearly two-thirds of countries that participated in the assessment relate to acts of fraud or phishing to retrieve personal data, together with wrongdoers who “pass for governments or health authorities”.
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The second technique is the most denounced by the countries surveyed is the spread of malware and the demand for ransom, with the “evolution in the choice of targets” to “maximize the damage and financial gains”.
The health facilities referred
Thus, the number of attacks disrupting the healthcare infrastructure, and then demand a ransom, has increased, with a peak significant the first two weeks of April. “Multiple groups (criminals) that were inactive in recent months” have returned to service, said Interpol.
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cyber-security, and security of computer systems in the face of attacks
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The registration of domain names using key words such as “coronavirus” or “COVID” is also “significant increase”, and takes place in the third position of the fraudulent techniques most often mentioned by the countries. These sites illegitimate lure internet users searching for medical equipment or information on the coronavirus”, among others, to retrieve their personal data. The countries surveyed also point to a massive flows of false information.
