Online shoppers need to be extra vigilant when making purchases this December as they could fall prey to cyber criminals.
According to a report by Panda Security, the growing popularity of online transactions has led to an increase in fraudulent online transactions - and consumers are at the highest risk of attack.
“Cyber criminals do not usually directly attack companies, but rather concentrate their efforts on the weakest link of the chain: the user. It is easier to get confidential data from an individual's PC than to hack a server to steal a database or intercept communication which is often encrypted,” the report says.
Cyber criminals have a range of tools available to them this festive season. Malware in the form of fake Christmas cards will affect most shoppers searching for online greeting cards.
“During the festive season, you should also be on the lookout for spoof greeting cards created to distribute malware, as well as infected P2P downloads and fake online auction offers,” says Jeremy Matthews, head of sub-Sahara operations at Panda Security.
Consumers also need to be on the lookout for fake online stores - Web pages set up to look like genuine online retail portals. The report warns that these “stores” advertise products at highly competitively prices, but are commonly used to steal victims' bank details.
More dangers
“Among the most dangerous threats to users over the Christmas period are banker Trojans. These malicious codes are designed to steal confidential data such as banking passwords and account numbers and make this information available to criminals who can then steal money directly from users. This type of malware accounted for 20% of all new malware that appeared during 2008,” says Matthews.
Spam and phishing are two other tools that cyber criminals utilise. Spam attacks are made up of e-mail messages advertising products while phishing uses e-mails that appear to come from financial institutions and require users to enter their bank details - online shoppers should be on the lookout for these methods, says Matthews.
To help prevent users falling victim to online fraud, Panda Security has drawn up a list of tips to bear in mind when shopping online:
* Always check the security characteristics of the Web page.
* Trust your instinct. The appearance of a Web page is often a good indication that it's not secure.
* Make sure there are no active viruses on your PC before shopping online.
* Never pay attention to spam messages that request confidential data.
* Before buying from an online store, investigate the reputation of the vendor.
* Never pay anything on the Internet unless you are completely sure about the vendor.
* Never send confidential data via e-mail.
* In view of these threats, will you shop online this Christmas? Give us your opinion via our feedback facility.
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