"The bad guys don't rest during the summer." The phrase comes up time and time again when discussing the cyber scam epidemic with experts. Not even in summer there is respite. It is the result of a combination of scams adapted to the summer season and a relaxation and lower state of guard on the part of the users.
“In summer we are willing to spend more and there is the possibility of larger amounts of fraud. In addition, less frequent scams are activated in other parts of the year, such as vacation rental deception”, puts Mikel Coira, director of technology at the Sipay payment platform, in a situation. "In summer the same types of scams are repeated, but with the hook of vacations, rooms and cheap tickets... There is not necessarily more, but they do adapt," agrees Marc Rivero, a security researcher at Kaspersky, a computer security firm. .
When thinking about individuals, bank details are the most valuable. Hence, a small effort is required: do not completely disconnect on vacation and remain attentive to the bank app and email to detect possible theft of information and fraudulent charges. "There are different value scales with our data, but the final reason is always economic," Rivero explains.
The added difficulty is that the attack fronts multiply with new modalities. Spam –junk mail– or phishing –pretending to be someone in fraudulent emails– are more common, but not everyone knows what vishing is, false calls posing as a third party such as our bank, or scareware, where an attempt is made to scare making believe that you have been the victim of an infection and you are urged to download a program that will solve it, where the virus really goes. It is also attacked on social networks. Those unbeatable offers or unknown stores with top brands hide something worse... “We see new ways to cheat on Instagram. They attract victims and take them off the platform with fraudulent links," says Luis Corrons, a cybersecurity expert at Avast. According to his data, 51% of threats blocked in the last quarter were scams.
With so much adaptation and reinvention, it is important to be up-to-date with new vulnerabilities –police authorities are constantly alerting their networks to new methodologies– and not let your guard down.
Escaping scams largely depends on applying common sense. “It is always good to be suspicious. If very cheap things and bargains are offered, it will usually be a fraud ”, Corrons exposes. “You have to pay attention, not wanting to do everything quickly. When talking about money, you have to be careful”, reiterates Coira. If prevention is so basic, why does it keep happening? "People know that things happen, but they believe that they will not happen to them," criticizes Rivero. Trust is an enemy. For example, many fail if they suddenly receive an alleged email from the bank or a call asking for our passwords to access the account. The bank would not.
In addition to being wary and not rushing, you can add a technological ally. Corrons is committed to installing VPN applications on the phone, "which encrypt the information that leaves the device" and are available in the Google and Apple stores. Especially when we connect to Wi-Fi networks when sightseeing. “70% of public Wi-Fi routers have some kind of security problem,” she warns. If controlled by a cybercriminal, it can redirect to fake bank pages and steal passwords, for example.
On the business side there are also possible improvements, such as reinforcement mechanisms. "We are going to see more and more use of biometrics in banking operations," says Mikel Sánchez, global director of technology at Veridas, a company specializing in identification processes that works with the main entities. An extra step required: “We protect most of the data with passwords. We use the same in several services, that makes them vulnerable. With data such as dates, names, pets... With social engineering, viewing profiles on networks, they can be obtained, ”he alerts. Voice identification is also called to gain weight.
A positive point has been the reinforced authentication, in force since 2021. It implies approving an operation or purchase from the mobile or with a message –or another method. "Fraud has fallen by 12% after implementing it," says Coira, from Sipay.
