Play Cyber Safe!
By Alexandru Petrescu, SVP, BIG Cyber at BMM
The global gaming industry, valued at $ 159 billion in 2019 and estimated to reach $ 200 billion in just 3 years, is also one of the “favorite” sectors of cybersecurity attackers, especially in the context of the Covid pandemic – 19 which stimulated the premises of gaming development at a faster pace.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, players looked for alternative methods of socialization, and the availability of different gaming platforms was the common element of interaction for most of them. The gaming community has grown significantly, reaching the record high on April 24, 2020, with 24 million players online, with $ 8 million at stake.
Data security and awareness campaigns in this industry have become more important than ever. Gaming is no longer developed just for simple consumption, but has gained a growing presence in the market, many companies having real financial stakes in the overall success of the industry. But the success and solid growth of this industry cannot be maintained if there are compromised accounts and eroded player confidence.
Research shows that between July 2018 and June 2020, more than 150 million web applications in the gaming industry were attacked, and more than 3,000 distinct DDoS attacks were recorded in this sector globally.
When we talk about targets, the first ones are those from the USA, followed by the gaming companies from Hong Kong, Great Britain, Singapore and Japan. Three of the top five targets have a strong presence in the mobile gaming market, which proves that the attackers target games on phones just like on any other gaming platform.
At the same time, cyber attackers not only attack gaming platforms, but directly target players, the most popular methods being phishing and credential stuffing in order to gain access to multiple information: usernames, bank accounts and any other information stored on servers related to users, information that is subsequently marketed or exploited for various purposes.
However, in an analysis recently developed by Akamai, more than 55% of frequent players say they had their accounts attacked, but only 20% say they are worried about it. 54% of them consider that ensuring protection against possible cyber attacks is a common responsibility of both players and the game development company.
Everyone has a role to play in protecting the gaming community, with increasing awareness of the issue and the use of appropriate protection tools becoming essential to achieving this goal.
Play Cyber Safe!
By Alexandru Petrescu, SVP, BIG Cyber at BMM
