More than nine in ten adults (93%) across 22 Commonwealth nations are unaware that email passwords and access to personal and business email accounts are the top target for criminals and other malicious actors, according to new research from Get Safe Online.
Instead, bank accounts were classed as the most important log-in details for professional hackers, despite the breadth of personal information our email accounts provide.
The organisation surveyed more than 5,200 adults online in February ahead of its Global24 event, which goes live today in cooperation with the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO).
Top tips and case studies about how to stay safe online from across the globe will be shared throughout the 24 hour period on the organisation’s social media channels.
The pinnacle of this years’ Global24 will be a strategic conference with participation from cybersecurity experts and local governmental stakeholders from the 24 countries that Get Safe Online operates within.
Senior representatives from Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific will gather to discuss key findings from the research and share knowledge and practice on how best to prevent online crime amongst their citizens.
The conference will be opened by His Excellency, Omar Daair, British High Commissioner to Rwanda. Panelists will include Colonel David Kanamugire, CEO of the National Cyber Security Authority (NCSA) in Rwanda and Deborah Uwera, Senior Inspector, Bank Supervision at the National Bank of Rwanda who will be collectively sharing best practice online safety awareness strategies on behalf of Rwanda.
The findings and results of this Commonwealth led conference will be collaborated into a Get Safe Online Global24 White Paper which will be launched later this month.
Col. David Kanamugire, CEO of NCSA said: “we are pleased to take part in the important discussions that will take place at the Global24 strategic conference, and welcome the partnership of the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) and Get Safe Online, in raising online safety awareness and preventing cybercrime amongst our citizens.
While issues of internet connectivity that were prevalent in most parts of Africa in the last few years have been mostly addressed, online safety has emerged as one of the urgent issues that require global partnership and focused actionEnsuring online safety requires significant commitment and global partnership and collaboration among all stakeholders.
In this regard, NCSA has the opportunity of working closely with Get Safe Online. Get Safe Online campaigns have been impactful in raising cybersecurity awareness among the Rwandan population.”
The timing of the Global24 event and research is particularly significant due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the work and learn-from-home restrictions many nations have faced or are now facing for the first time, as we are witnessing in the Pacific region.
With COVID-19 accelerating digital transformation, many more people around the world have now started using PCs, laptops and other internet-enabled devices for everyday tasks. Online platforms and services use email as a way of providing security and access to private documents, credentials, and other important information, from bank account details to memberships.
This is often supplemented by Two Factor Authentication, where a user is asked to confirm access to a platform or portal through their email account. email accounts therefore sit at the intersection between many people’s real and digital lives.
This also means that they are a desirable target for cybercriminals and other malicious actors, who try and hack, phish or scam their way into people’s lives and bank accounts via their email.
But despite email passwords acting as a gateway to a vast amount of personal information, only 7% of respondents thought them to be a top target.
Instead, more than three quarters of respondents (78%) said bank accounts were the main priority for hackers and 5% considered social media accounts to be a key target.
The following international case study provides an insight into the far-reaching damage fraudulent email access can cause.
Although many respondents failed to identify the key access point for cyber criminals, most are aware of the threat. When asked if they worried about cybercrime and scams, the vast majority of respondents (88%) said they were concerned, with one in five (21%) admitting they think about the issue all the time and more than two-thirds (67%) revealing that they think about it some of the time.
Just 3.5% of people said they did not think about the issue.
Beyond emails, cybercriminals have used increasingly sophisticated techniques during the pandemic to prey on the public, including posing as delivery companies or government organisations through text or messaging apps.
With WhatsApp being used more and more for scamming the public, Get Safe Online asked respondents whether they thought the platform was safe.
The public were divided on the issue. While more than 28% said they believed the Meta-owned platform was safe, a further 27% said it was not. And over four out of ten (43%) of those surveyed admitted they did not know.
Tony Neate, CEO of Get Safe Online, said: “Our emails are at the heart of our digital lives. With the mass adoption of digital technology during the pandemic across the globe, it now means email is at the centre of our lives more than ever.
“Unfortunately, cybercriminals take advantage of the vulnerable and those who may be new to digital technology, in order to gain access to their email accounts so they can steal private information, access other important platforms like an online banking account or cause general harm.
“We are hugely grateful for the support of the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and our country partners across the globe in helping us to exchange ideas, advice and best practice as to how to keep our communities safe and also effectively communicate good advice.
“The scams and tricks cybercriminals use have become increasingly sophisticated, particularly during the pandemic and it is crucial that we are aware of the risks and protect ourselves from the ever-present threat.”
