Consumers warned as shopping season starts
As retailers stock up on goods for the Christmas shopping season, cybersecurity company Kaspersky Lab warns about vulnerable sites that could be targeted by cyber criminals
Retailers are filling up inventories for the Christmas season, as they expect good holiday sales this year.
Philippine Retailers Association Inc. (PRA) Cebu Chapter president Robert Go said retailers started placing orders in October for delivery this month until December, in time for the Christmas sale season.
“We expect the same trend (of buying) this year,” said Go.
Money sent home by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) is expected to fuel spending in the last quarter of the year.
“The remittances are a big push for families to buy big-ticket items like furniture, appliances and personal needs for young people,” said Go.
Remittances sent home by overseas Filipino workers reached US$23.7 billion, up by 2.4 percent for the first nine months of 2018.
As soon as the “ber months” arrive, Filipinos start preparing for Christmas.
This is the time of year when spending of Filipinos is highest.
But as consumers face a busy shopping season, cybersecurity company Kaspersky Lab warns shoppers and retailers alike on their vulnerabilities, especially during shopping events such as the Black Friday sale that is happening worldwide on Nov. 23.
In report, Kaspersky Lab research shows that banking Trojans are actively targeting online users of popular consumer brands, stealing credentials and other in- formation through these sites.
A banking Trojan is a form of malware that seeks to collect the credentials of online banking customers from infected machines.
Kaspersky Lab has detected 9.2 million attempted attacks by the end of the third quarter this year, compared to 11.2 million for 2017, with detection for one malware family up by 34 percent.
Half of all online shops attacked were well-known consumer apparel brands including fashion, footwear, gifts, toys and department stores.
Online shoppers in the US, Italy, Germany, Russia, and emerging markets appear to be particularly at risk, the cybersecurity firm said.
Black Friday is an informal name for the day following Thanksgiving Day in the United States, the fourth Thursday of November.
It has been regarded as the beginning of the country’s Christmas shopping season. It is during this day that the biggest retailers gear up with their best deals.
The Trojans, according to Kaspersky, target well-known e-commerce brands to hunt for user credentials like login, password, card number, phone number and more.
They seize the data from victims by intercepting input data on target sites, modifying the online page content, and/or redirecting visitors to phishing pages.
Yury Namestnikov, principal security researcher of Kaspersky Lab’s global research and analysis team, said cyber criminals could use the stolen accounts in money laundering schemes by buying things from a website using a victim’s credentials so they look like known customers and don’t trigger any anti-fraud measures, and
Check and double-check the integrity of websites before entering or downloading any data. YURI NAMESTNIKOV
Kaspersky principal security researcher
then reselling those items.
“As we come into the busiest online shopping season of the year, we urge consumers and retailers to be extra vigilant about their security, and to check and double-check the integrity of websites before entering or downloading any data,” he said.
Kaspersky said a powerful and updated security solution is a must for all devices used for online shopping.
It also advised to avoid buying anything online from websites that look potentially dangerous, or which resemble an incomplete version of a trusted brand’s website.
Kaspersky also warned against clicking on unknown links in emails or social media messages, even from people they know, unless they are expecting the message.
Kaspersky advised online traders to use a reputable payment service and to keep online trading and payment platform software updated to make the system less vulnerable to cyber criminals.
Sellers are advised to use a security solution to protect their business and customers, and pay attention to the personal information used by customers.