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Esports is more popular than ever, and there has been registered a monumental increase in the number of cyberattacks in the sector. The complexity of the attacks grows as the sector advances because hackers are attracted by the financial rewards they might get if they’re successful.
Until the past decade or two, some considered that online games were mainly an endeavour suitable for young people like kids and teenagers. Nowadays, they’re listed among activities that enable adults to make a living or engage in entertainment. The industry has become more inclusive over the last few years, and the trend will most likely continue in the future.
According to studies, women are more willing to pay for online games, and the average gamer is 30, meaning that more adults than children and teenagers engage in this activity. The esports market size was estimated to be $1.22 billion a few years ago, and some experts believe it will reach $1.9 billion by 2030. Unsurprisingly, online criminals target the sector, especially as it functions on the internet. The potential to make a revenue attracts hackers, who are constantly developing new methods and tools to access the ecosystem. Here’s what to be aware of and how to avoid them.
Hackers attempt to illegally make money from esports
Esports viewership has increased tremendously over the years, and the sector has become one of the highest-earning sectors. The estimated market value of esports betting was $11.3 billion in 2023, and more and more bookmakers are vying for this market share. Fans have the option to wager on their preferred team at predetermined odds, which are equivalent to those of other sports like boxing or football.
The growing number of betting vendors participating in esports has made it a profitable venue for hackers to DDoS games and competitions. Traditionally, threat actors have bet bigger on undervalued players while undermining their competitors’ systems.
A 2015 League of Legends match between Denial and Dignitas illustrates this, as the favoured team, Denial, was targeted by a DDoS attack. After locking the player out and preventing him from returning, his team was forced to surrender the game and, with it, all hope of winning. The threat actors would have benefited greatly if they had wagered at 12:1 odds for Dignitas to win (only 8% had done so).
Hackers use phishing schemes to extract in-game sensitive information
2K, a gaming firm, dealt with a data breach situation on their help desk that led to the distribution of malicious information to all gamers. A common assault that can make a business or player very exposed is in-game phishing via conversations, especially when looking at older platforms and their cross-site scripting.
In 2022, Neopets revealed a breach in which 460GB of source code files and the Personally Identifiable Information of 69 million members were exposed. The attacker had been active within the systems for 18 months. Neopets made the following announcement: “We have discovered that, for both current and former Neopets users, the information that may be compromised is that which was supplied when a user registered for or used Neopets, including name, email address, username, date of birth, gender, IP address, Neopets PIN, hashed password, and information about the user’s pet and gaming activities.”
Following a ransomware attack, Bandai Namco, the firm behind games like Tekken and Pac-Man, alerted its gamers to the possibility that their data had been compromised.
Gamers are exposed to the following threats
Viruses and malware
Searching for less expensive or free versions of your preferred games can put you in danger of unintentionally downloading malware and viruses. This also applies to using cheat codes and making purchases from independent merchants. You could be at risk from a security flaw even if you download games lawfully. Once malware has infected your computer, hackers can make use of your personal data. So be wary of avoiding these and spotting the signs.
Theft of identity
Cybercriminals gather personally identifiable data in order to create victim profiles. The chat feature, which lets you converse with other players, is one of the possible risks when playing video games online with random people. Thieves can obtain private information, including your name, phone number, and home address, by using the chat feature. So you should never hand out your personal information to anyone online.
Account takeover
Many people tend to use the same username and password for all their accounts, regardless if we’re speaking about gaming platforms or banking apps – which is far from recommended because if they are victims of a data breach, the cybercriminals can access all their accounts. Unfortunately, not all gaming platforms offer superior cybersecurity, leaving some vulnerable to cyberattacks. If this happens, they can use a resource like https://www.databreachcompensationexpert.co.uk to learn what steps they should take to gain compensation.
Sometimes, online criminals use brute force attacks to take over accounts. This method implies the usage of automated scripts to break into an account and access credentials obtained wrongfully from third-party sources.
Doxing and swatting
If cybercriminals steal your sensitive data they can publish this online – an action called doxing (or doxxing) in cybersecurity. Usually, they use this method to intimidate, humiliate, or punish you. Doxers have several reasons why they engage in this activity, they could do it solely for fun or because they believe that they exact justice in some way. Sometimes, they are only jealous and use doxing attacks to harass their victims. And there are a few cases when they try to profit from it financially. A doxing attack is more than enough to disrupt your life because its effects are usually long term.
Swatting is another form of cyber attack. It involves criminals sending law enforcement to your house by reporting a fake emergency. The stress and difficulty of clearing things out could intimidate you into doing something they ask. This is also extremely dangerous and is another reason to protect your personal information online.
Spyware
Spyware schemes usually target gamers because they are quite tempted to access websites containing information about the games, so they may play without checking the source’s reliability. Unfortunately, some of these websites could include spyware programs that allow cybercriminals to monitor their online activity and sell information to third parties interested in breaching their privacy.
If you’re a gamer and want to ensure your endeavour doesn’t threaten your privacy and security, this article might help you figure things out.
