One Out of ten Aussies Fell Victim to Online Threats Last YearAs per the VeriSign Online Fraud Barometer figures released on July 6, 2010, one out of ten web users in Australia lost money to online identity fraud in the past year (2009). The total monetary loss from online identity fraud estimated at $1.286 Billion. The research was carried out by Galaxy Research and involved 2510 Australians aged 18 years and above. The research discovers that the average loss by Australians due to phishing mail, bogus use of credit cards, Nigerian scams and other online fraud was $1,000. About the accuracy of the figures, Detective Inspector Bruce Van Der Graaf, Head of the NSW Police Computer Crime Unit, stated that these figures seemed to be within the range of probabilities, as reported by smh on July 6, 2010. He adds that the phishing mail involves a lot of ID fraud which is very difficult for users to detect. In fact, people overlook these phishing e-mails that could lead to heavy losses. Therefore, computer users need to understand the importance of remaining vigilant while working online. Moreover, Detective Superintendent Brian Hay, Head of the QLD Police Fraud Squad, was not surprised from the fact that youth were losing most of the money. As per the survey discovery, users aged over 50 were more cautious about online security compared to the the younger generation, as per the reports by smh on July 6, 2010. He further states that he went to give a presentation recently to some University students. He believed that young people should understand the Internet and different ways to avoid online scam, but he was surprised to find that they (young people) lack awareness about avoiding online scams. Brian Hay adds that most of the students believe that if the site appears professional, everything is correct. Although the youth is well acquainted with today's technology, they are still unprepared for online threats and dangers. They have no knowledge about these threats and dangers Lastly, the security experts suggest that people should be careful of the present scams and adopt actions to lessen the risks. Related article: One Out of Four Data Breaches Involves Schools ยป SPAMfighter News - 7/15/2010 |    |
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