Brazil loses 16 billion with internet crimes

One of the most important studies in the world on the cyber crime was released today. The report Norton Cybercrime Report  aims to understand how cybercrime affects people and how the adoption and evolution of new technologies for the security of Internet users works.

With conclusions based on reports from 13 adults in 24 countries, the study reveals that the global cost of cybercrime is US$110 billion. In Brazil, more than 28 million people were victims of this type of crime in the last 12 months, a loss of R$ 16 bilhões.

“The losses can range from financial damage with the invasion of bank accounts to identity, when the person discovers their login, changes the password and makes a chat to return their profile”, said Fabiano Tricarico, consumer director at Norton.

See the comparison between Brazil and the rest of the world:

Changes:

This year's research shows an increase in new forms of online crime compared to last year, particularly on social media or mobile devices:

• 15% of social media users report that someone has hacked into their profile and impersonated them
• One in 10 social media users have been victims of a scam or fake links on collaborative platforms
• While 75% believe cybercriminals are targeting social media, less than half (44%) use a security solution that protects them from threats in these environments. Also, only 49% use their privacy settings to control the information they share.
• Nearly a third (31%) received a text message from someone they didn't know asking them to click on a link or dial an unknown number to gain access to a voice mailbox.

Beware of passwords:

More than a quarter (27%) of respondents report being notified to change the password of a compromised email account. With people sending, receiving and storing a lot of information such as personal photos (50%), work-related documents (42%), bank statement details (22%) and passwords for other accounts in the online environment (17%), these and Emails can be a potential gateway for criminals seeking personal and corporate information.

“Contractors can either gain access to everything in your email inbox or they can reset your passwords for any other website you might access by clicking on the 'forgot your password' link, intercepting the emails and effectively blocking you from your own accounts,” says Adam Palmer, chief cybercrime analyst at Norton.

For more information, visit the Norton Cybercrime Report 2012.