With the COVID-19 pandemic still in its throes, live streaming has gained momentum among those wishing to watch their favourite sports.
However, Kaspersky says bad actors are like pickpockets − they go where the crowds are. They are taking advantage of fans’ eagerness to watch the F1 by carrying out a slew of fraudulent online schemes to gain users’ credentials.
This Sunday, 12 September, the Italian F1 Grand Prix is set to take place at Monza.
To find out how attackers are planning to monetise fans’ interest in F1, Kaspersky experts analysed a slew of Web sites offering to stream the event for free. As expected, some of these pages turned out to be phishing Web sites aimed at stealing viewers’ credentials.
The company’s researchers found many fake Web sites providing a live stream of the Grand Prix, which required spectators to register and pay $1 to continue watching.
Tatyana Shcherbakova, a security expert at Kaspersky, says threat actors often use major sporting events as a lure to steal money and credentials from unsuspecting users.
The company observed a similar trend during the Olympic Games. Fans who are eager to watch a sporting event become careless about the sources they visit, which is exactly what cyber criminals are waiting for.
“Fraudsters have developed a variety of techniques to distract users’ attention and steal their credentials, which is why we encourage spectators to be alert to the sites they visit,” she adds.
To avoid falling victim to scams of this nature, Kaspersky advises users to check the authenticity of Web sites before entering personal data and only use official Web pages to watch sport transmissions. “Double-check URL formats and company name spellings.”
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