The Winter Olympics 2018 in Pyeongchang, South Korea is a sensitive target for cybercriminals.
The 2016 Games saw a serious attack take place. The World Anti-Doping Agency database was hacked by Russian hackers through an account created by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for the Summer Olympics in Rio.
Confidential information about high-profile American athletes such as Venus Williams and Simone Biles were stolen during the hack. The information could possibly include sensitive details on athletes and doping test samples.
Researcher with cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Seongsu Park, said, “Some attackers have a political intent—they can attack the organization.”
The Olympics serve as a grand global platform for activists and other political strategies. This is in relevance to the winter games in Pyeongchang this year which speaks of North Korea’s involvement.
Nick Savvides, chief technology officer for Symantec Asia, said, it is a “fantastic opportunity for cybercriminals to steal people’s identification, take money out of their wallets.”
The threats have raised concerns: the possibility for hackers to tamper with athletes’ results.
However, according to CNN Tech, industry experts believe the chances are very low. “Those timing systems are generally run independently. It’s generally difficult to manipulate results,” Savvides added.
Pyeongchang will provide very good wireless spots with great connectivity. Going online could risk the user in several ways. Park said, “Any attacker can make fake internet access points.”
Americans travelling to the Winter Olympics are sincerely advised by The US Department of Homeland Security to turn off their Bluetooth and Wifi when its not in use.
The Department said, “When using a public or unsecured wireless connection, avoid using sites and applications that require personal information like logins.”