Cyber crooks eye jackpot in festive shopping

from MTHULISI SIBANDA in Johannesburg, South Africa
JOHANNESBURG, (CAJ News) – WHILE a majority of people in South Africa are aware of financial cyberthreats, more than half have had their financial credentials fall into the wrong hands.

Amid the ongoing season of unrestrained shopping cybercriminals targeting consumers’ banking credentials or online shopping accounts could hit the jackpot.

This is a cording to findings by a global cybersecurity company, Kaspersky Lab.

It has released a report titled, “From festive fun to password panic: Managing money online this Christmas.”

According to the report, online shopping has emerged one of the most popular activities on the internet, only surpassed by email.

While the majority of people in the country (97 percent) are aware of cyberthreats, 53 percent have had their financial credentials fall into culprits. Of those whose credentials were compromised, the Kaspersky Lab survey revealed that 41 percent of them never got their money back.

Africa’s most advanced economy is gripped by the annual season of shopping sprees.

It started with the Black Friday in November, swiftly followed by Christmas and New Year gift giving. January sales would follow.

“The end of the year and the holiday season is a wonderful time when people are buying presents for their families and friends. But no one wants to have this time spoiled by losing money through unsafe transactions or online fraud,” said Marina Titova, Head of Consumer Product Marketing, Kaspersky Lab.

The official urged consumers to be attentive to their financial data and online payments, taking care to avoid putting bank card credentials on untrusted web sites or making payments from unsecured devices.

– CAJ News