Cyber threats in online education sector increased by 60% in H2 2020

According to a new report by Kaspersky, the educational sector continues to attract the attention of cybercriminals on the Internet, during the time of Covid-19.It has been mentioned that 270,171 users encountered various threats disguised as popular learning platforms during July to December 2020. This is said to be a 60% increase as compared to the first half of last year.

Also mentioned is that from January to June last year, the total number of users that encountered various threats in the form of popular online learning platforms/video conferencing applications was 168,550. That was a staggering 20,455% increase when compared to the same period for 2019.

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Kaspersky adds that this number has continued to grow from July to December. As of January 2021, the number of users encountering similar threats reached 270,17. As per the report, this was a 60% increase when compared to the first half of 2020.

Talking more about the online threats in the education sector, the report states that Zoom was the most popular software to lure users. This is understandable considering it is also one of the most used applications around the world. Zoom was followed by Moodle and Google Meet. While the number of users that encountered threats increased for all, the number stayed almost the same for Google Classroom.

Furthermore, around 98% of the threats encountered were not-a-virus, which is divided into riskware and adware. Users often faced threats disguised as popular video meeting apps and online course platforms through fake application installers.

However, the software security firm has given some tips on how to avoid this.

-Do not download any unofficial versions or modifications of these applications/platforms. Look for information about the developer and choose the official app stores.

-Use different, strong passwords for each of your accounts. You can also use password managers that also give you suggestions.

-Always make sure you are on the official company website before proceeding to download anything to your device. Fake websites may look just like the real thing, so you should always double-check the URL format and spelling of the company name before you download anything.