Coming off of gaming’s biggest year to date, cybercriminals have taken notice of the industry’s great success and are increasingly targeting gamers looking to make money by compromising user accounts and launching attacks.
More users means more opportunities to steal information – and timely new data from Webroot’s Threat Research team uncovered a 250% jump in Steam mentions on phishing sites between November and December 2020. Furthermore, impacted by another wave of COVID lockdowns and holiday gift-giving, Steam-related phishing attacks are only increasing, with a nearly 400% jump in phishing sites mentioning Steam in January 2021, when compared to November 2020.
<p>Remember that your online gaming accounts are a hot target for hackers for several reasons. Cybercriminals are able to extract funds that you may have paid in, or sell items you have purchased in your games, but they can also use your account for theft via a stored credit card and also for money laundering – purchasing in-game currency using one stolen account and then transferring it to another compromised account to try and cover their tracks from law enforcement. For these reasons, it is important to keep your credentials safe, use strong passwords, and be aware of phishing attacks trying to fool you into providing your details.</p> <p> </p> <p>Might this data be useful for your reporting? I’m happy to set up a call with Webroot threat analysts or take any written questions you may have. Experts can also provide advice for combatting threats specific to gaming such as credential stuffing – utilizing username and password combinations purchased on the Dark Web to access gaming services.</p>