Italy in the crosshairs of cybercrime
In 2022 the proliferation of the exchange on the dark web Of credentials of compromised mail accounts, in particular the hackers have focused on the combinations of data that include the credit cards eh phone numbers. This information is the one mainly involved in the circulation of personal data online as emerges from the latest Cyber Observatory realized by CRIF
It aims to analyze the vulnerability of people and companies to cyber attacks and to interpret the main trends concerning data exposed in open web and dark web environments. The Observatory analyzes in particular the type of information, the areas in which data traffic is concentrated and the countries most exposed, as well as offering some ideas for dealing with cyber risk in an informed way.
Focus on combinations
Il telephone number it is often combined together with other personal data (such as name and surname, or password). In the last year there has been an increase in the combination of telephone number with name and surname (+4.4%). This data is precious because, in addition to allowing access to many platforms and apps, with the introduction of 2-factor authentication in security protocols, it is essential for illegally accessing private profiles.
Also worrying is the main increase recorded compared to last year, +10.5%, relating to the combination of the credit card number together with the cvv and to Expiration date. Obviously, through these credentials, hackers can steal money or conclude operations on the web and dark web.
The number of alert sent in 2022 is over 1.6 million
Most refer to the dark web, with 1.5 million alerts, compared to 106,000 alerts on the open web. Although the total number of alerts is decreasing (1.8 million alerts were recorded on the dark web alone in 2021), the CRIF Observatory shows that the severity of the alerts sent in 2022 has increased compared to the previous period. Alerts relating to the discovery of compromised accounts, telephone numbers and tax codes are on the increase. In Italia, the share of alerts sent to users on the dark web reached 83.7%, while only 16.3% of users are alerted by data collected on the public web.
“The latest edition of the Cyber Observatory confirms the relevance of our data for fraudsters. In fact, the circulation of data in 2022 was much higher than in the past, so much so that the data found on the dark web tripled compared to the previous year.” comment Beatrice Rubini, Executive Director di CRIF.
The geopolitical scenario feeds the cyberwar
“No reasons of this increase are also linked to the current geopolitical situation, which sees intense activity not only on physical battlefields but also on virtual ones, the so-called ‘cyberwar’ or cyber warfare. HER consumers and companies are increasingly targeted by cybercriminals, who launch attacks aimed at stealing data and causing damage, with serious economic and reputational consequences” adds Rubini.
“Often these are phishing or ransomware attacks, aimed at people and businesses organizations, whether small or large. So what to do to protect our data? Check the communications which we receive every day before click. Be very careful before entering your data to access online services. Use data monitoring services, which offer better control over the exposure of our data on the web” he concludes.
(Ticker)