The internet has brought with it some incredible inventions. From instant messaging to on-demand entertainment and even the ability to work from anywhere in the world. There’s no doubt that this is just the beginning, and we’re bound to see many more advancements being brought into the world of the internet.
However, all of these great things come at a cost. Ever since the internet age made its way into the world, internet users have been targeted by cybercrime. While many tend to overlook cybercrime, it is, in fact, extremely dangerous and simply cannot be ignored due to the severity of the consequences that victims face.
However, in recent years cybercrime has become much more common, with attacks becoming more frequent, and worse yet, cyberattacks becoming more and more successful. This is because cybercrime has evolved, and while many internet users have been ignoring cybercrime, it has become much more effective than ever before. Keep reading to find out why cybercrime is such a big problem in this day and age, and how you can ensure that you don’t fall victim to it.
When we look into the stats, there’s no doubt that there has been a sudden rise in cybercrime over the past two years — we’ll be looking at why that is in a minute. Not only has the frequency of cyberattacks increased, but also their rate of success. With more and more successful cyberattacks taking place, it’s more important than ever before to take note of how they work and how you can ensure that your devices are protected during this time.
It’s not just about the current day and age either. Cybercrime is guaranteed to be a part of our future too. In fact, we may never see the numbers decline after these two years. As our society becomes more reliant on technology and screen time, more opportunities present themselves for cybercriminals to manipulate and deceive their victims into falling for their traps. Cybercriminals are smart and cunning, and they have developed the strategies and tactics that they use to lure victims in and take advantage of them.
They have done this through the use of social engineering. Social engineering is when the hackers deceive the victim by posing as a person or company that they might know and trust — such as your bank, local grocery store, or even something as globally renowned as Netflix.
The hackers will replicate the logos and color schemes used by these companies to create a replica email, which is then used as a phishing scam to steal your login credentials, personal information, or even your banking details.
The3se replica phishing scams are difficult to spot, which is why the success rate of cybercrime has gone up. In the future, these phishing scams will only become more and more difficult to point out, and the success rate of cybercrime is bound to increase.
Over the past two years , there has been a massive increase in cybercrime, and there are two main reasons for this sudden spike. While the evolution of cybercrime that we discussed earlier directly correlates with the increase in successful cyberattacks, it does not necessarily explain the increase in frequency — which is what we’ll be looking into now.
The first reason why cybercrime has increased massively over the past two years is because of the Covid-19 pandemic. When the pandemic was at its worst, countries all around the world closed off their borders and sent their citizens into lockdown. With people not being allowed out of their homes without good reason, many people had to keep themselves entertained from home, and the best way to do so was to use a device of some form.
With offices closing temporarily, many staff members were also forced to work remotely. This means that people have to upgrade their laptops and home internet to ensure that they can be connected with their employers and colleagues at all times.
The second reason for the increase in cybercrime in recent years is because more and more people have a device of some form in their households. Whether it’s a laptop, smartphone, or tablet, having a device is essential in this day and age, especially during the Covid-19 lockdown.
Whether it’s for entertainment, keeping in touch with friends and family, work, or even school, having a device is important. It’s rare to find a household that doesn’t have at least one device. This automatically leads to an increase in screen time.
This increased screen time will naturally lead to an increase in cyberattacks. People who are new to using devices and using the internet are also more likely to fall victim to cybercrimes because they are unaware of the dangers they face online.
So, how do we make sure that we don’t fall victim to this increase in cybercrime? There are a few different cybersecurity tools you can look into, but if you don’t know what you’re looking for then it can be difficult to find the right tool to keep your device protected.
The best tool to invest in is premium antivirus software. Antivirus software will constantly scan your devices for any viruses and other forms of malware, and it can take action to remove them from your devices too. You should consider investing in antivirus software that can scan files, links, and emails to see if they are legitimate before you interact with them.
You should always ensure that you invest in premium cybersecurity tools rather than free ones. Free cybersecurity tools might be tempting to use, but they come with several drawbacks that will affect your device’s level of security — ultimately, they are not worth the risk.
You should also ensure that your device’s software and your cybersecurity software is always kept up to date. Software updates are sent out to fix any flaws in the system, and they can also be used to add extra security features to your device, which is always a welcome addition.