The way families and friends celebrate Christmas this year will change due to restrictions to curb the spread of Covid-19. Ana Bianca Marin
The way families and friends celebrate Christmas this year will change due to restrictions to curb the spread of Covid-19. Ana Bianca Marin
The way families and friends celebrate Christmas this year will change due to restrictions to curb the spread of Covid-19. Ana Bianca Marin
The way families and friends celebrate Christmas this year will change due to restrictions to curb the spread of Covid-19. Ana Bianca Marin

How to protect yourself from cybercrime this Christmas


Patrick Ryan
  • English
  • Arabic

Cyber attacks are expected to rise over the coming month as Christmas online shopping gets under way.

Experts have warned that cybercrime is likely to increase as more people prioritise online shopping over in-store purchases due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

People must be on full alert and become “cyber fit” to protect themselves from the threat posed by cybercriminals in the run-up to the New Year.

Seasonal themed email-based attacks are likely to be high during this festive period

“Seasonal themed email-based attacks are likely to be high during this festive period,” said Vijay Chandnani, executive director of Techware Services and Solutions.

“You have Diwali and Christmas in quick succession. As the festive season approaches, buying trends today are more tilted towards e-commerce and online shopping rather than in-store purchases.

“Attacks on individual shoppers are likely to be higher, especially now that more people are working remotely during the pandemic and some are not on secure networks. I would not be surprised if the attacks are 10-15 per cent higher this year.”

The UAE has already reported a significant increase in the number of cyber attacks since the pandemic began.

Dubai Future Foundation said there was a 600 per cent increase in the number of phishing emails that hoped to lure users into giving up sensitive data from February to June.

The National spoke to a number of cyber security experts who offered readers tips to help keep the online criminals at bay.

Consumers have been urged to be vigilant about online transactions and how they pay for their goods with cybercriminals stepping up their efforts. Getty
Consumers have been urged to be vigilant about online transactions and how they pay for their goods with cybercriminals stepping up their efforts. Getty

Set strong and varied passwords

Strong passwords are key when keeping personal data safe, said Candid Wüest, vice president of tech firm Acronis.

“You need to use a strong password and have a different one for each service that you have,” he said.

“Don’t use the same password that you would use on your Twitter account for your email account or online banking.

“If you cannot remember all the different passwords then make use of a password manager, there are many free apps on phones and laptops that you can use for this.”

Look out for dodgy emails

He said consumers needed to be fully alert when receiving emails with offers that seemed too good to resist.

“You have to be vigilant and be cyber fit and by that I mean you need to show good judgment when you getting an email with a deal that’s too good to be true,” he said.

“You can’t let greed cloud your better judgment and think twice before responding with personal information.”

Some of the most popular scams at the moment from cybercriminals are offers involving the latest model of the iPhone and the new PlayStation 5.

Mr Wüest said his company had noticed a 400 per cent increase in the number of remote desktop protocol cyber attacks in Q2 of 2020, compared to the same period in 2019.

These attacks, if successful, allow criminals to access a computer and operate Windows on a device in another location.

“We are expecting to see those numbers increase over Christmas as there will be even more people shopping online,” he said.

Be mindful of your Wi-Fi connection

Mr Wüest urged consumers to be careful about which Wi-Fi connection they use when making online transactions.

“If you are on a public Wi-Fi like in a mall or an airport don’t do anything sensitive like banking as a lot of these networks can be compromised,” he said.

“It’s a lot safer to do it through the 4G on your mobile phone or use a VPN.

“It might even be better to wait a few minutes and just do it at home.”

Other experts said there were a number of methods people could use to reduce the risk of being scammed by cybercriminals.

Online shopping has gained significant traction in the UAE and is expecting to pick up as the holiday season begins. Getty
Online shopping has gained significant traction in the UAE and is expecting to pick up as the holiday season begins. Getty

Use a credit card, not a debit card

“I would recommend not purchasing any merchandise online with a debit card and minimise any direct credit card usage,” said Morey Haber, chief technical officer with BeyondTrust.

“Make online purchases with a third party proxy like PayPal or Apple Pay that is linked to a credit card or debit card to provide an extra layer of financial protection.

“I would also recommend not allowing the merchant to save your payment information for future usage.”

How an individual pays for their transactions online is another crucial factor in minimising the likelihood of falling foul of cyber crime.

Consider using a mobile app

“Something that consumers don’t realise is that websites are not as secure as mobile apps,” said Matt Walmsley, director for the EMEA region with tech company Vectra.

The FBI put out a warning in the US last year about e-skimming. This involves attackers hacking websites of prominent retailers and compromising the back end to steal consumer credit card information.

“That is a problem with websites but not in mobile apps,” said Mr Walmsley.

“So, in so much as is possible, use retailer mobile apps for online shopping.”

Look out for fake websites

Cybercriminals are also stepping up their efforts by creating fake websites that appear to belong to popular international retailers, hoping to trick consumers into entering sensitive personal details.

“Cybercriminals create a copy of a web page that looks exactly like the landing page of popular streaming platforms and retailers,” said Maher Yamout, senior security researcher with Kaspersky.

“Sometimes, cybercriminals also create new landing pages that provide users with free access in exchange for their credentials or bank account details.

“To an untrained eye, they will not be able to distinguish between a legitimate website and one disguised as a phishing website.

“Internet users must stay vigilant while browsing the internet for their favourite TV shows or buying things online,” he added.

If you go

The flights

There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.

The trip

Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.

The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.

 

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

RESULT

Shabab Al Ahli Dubai 0 Al Ain 6
Al Ain: Caio (5', 73'), El Shahat (10'), Berg (65'), Khalil (83'), Al Ahbabi (90' 2)

Mubalada World Tennis Championship 2018 schedule

Thursday December 27

Men's quarter-finals

Kevin Anderson v Hyeon Chung 4pm

Dominic Thiem v Karen Khachanov 6pm

Women's exhibition

Serena Williams v Venus Williams 8pm

Friday December 28

5th place play-off 3pm

Men's semi-finals

Rafael Nadal v Anderson/Chung 5pm

Novak Djokovic v Thiem/Khachanov 7pm

Saturday December 29

3rd place play-off 5pm

Men's final 7pm

LAST-16 EUROPA LEAGUE FIXTURES

Wednesday (Kick-offs UAE)

FC Copenhagen (0) v Istanbul Basaksehir (1) 8.55pm

Shakhtar Donetsk (2) v Wolfsburg (1) 8.55pm

Inter Milan v Getafe (one leg only) 11pm

Manchester United (5) v LASK (0) 11pm 

Thursday

Bayer Leverkusen (3) v Rangers (1) 8.55pm

Sevilla v Roma  (one leg only)  8.55pm

FC Basel (3) v Eintracht Frankfurt (0) 11pm 

Wolves (1) Olympiakos (1) 11pm 

MATCH INFO

Schalke 0

Werder Bremen 1 (Bittencourt 32')

Man of the match Leonardo Bittencourt (Werder Bremen)

WHAT ARE NFTs?

     

 

    

 

   

 

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are tokens that represent ownership of unique items. They allow the tokenisation of things such as art, collectibles and even real estate.

 

An NFT can have only one official owner at one time. And since they're minted and secured on the Ethereum blockchain, no one can modify the record of ownership, not even copy-paste it into a new one.

 

This means NFTs are not interchangeable and cannot be exchanged with other items. In contrast, fungible items, such as fiat currencies, can be exchanged because their value defines them rather than their unique properties.

 

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

MATCH INFO

Newcastle 2-2 Manchester City
Burnley 0-2 Crystal Palace
Chelsea 0-1 West Ham
Liverpool 2-1 Brighton
Tottenham 3-2 Bournemouth
Southampton v Watford (late)