Has COVID-19 lockdown resulted in increased cyber crimes in India?
COVID-19 has affected the whole world with millions of people being infected and thousands of people dying every day. India too has not been spared from this pandemic with more than one lakh people infected with around 3500 deaths. We are in the 4th phase of lockdown in India and we don’t see any respite from this pandemic in coming months. With the lockdown being extended in every phase, Patent Attorney in India has seen a massive increase in cyber crimes which is a serious threat to cyber security and to our country as a whole.
Major reason for increased cyber attacks in India is that since the lockdown was imposed, people are forced to stay at home with few working from home and majority of people having no work. Due to this, more and more people have started to use the internet and download all sorts of applications and surf various websites without checking their authenticity.
Compromising data security with Virus attacks
Virus attacks have always been the most common form of stealing your confidential information but due to the lockdown, since the internet usage has increased drastically, more and more cases of virus attacks are being reported to Patent Attorney in India. There are many websites and applications that ask users to give permission to access their personal information and users who are unaware of these threats, instantly give permissions without even once thinking about the repercussions .
There are various types of virus attacks and depends on the hacker, which information he wants to steal from you. Adwares are something which pops up unwanted and irrelevant ads whenever you try to open your website. Hackers make money by making you click on those ads and this ruins your surfing experience as those ads are completely irrelevant to you.
Ransomware is another very dangerous virus attack that locks your computer and the hacker demands ransom in the form of money to unlock it. You are left with no choice but to give them money which proves to be a huge loss for you.
Bank Frauds and money related crimes
The data on your laptops and phones are instantly shared with the hackers with malicious intentions who misuse it in all the ways they want. Also, with online bill payments and shopping, hackers try to steal your confidential bank information as well which they use to take out money from your bank accounts proving to be a huge financial loss. Giving your credit card/debit card information like pins and CVV numbers unknowingly might result in hackers taking away all your money from your bank accounts.
The government of India issues warnings frequently via SMSs and emails to make people aware of such frauds but hackers are in search of such innocent people who do have any idea about these crimes and easily share their personal information. Apart from this, there are people who call innocent users and ask for their ATM pins and CVV numbers and instantly shop from their card within seconds. Mostly uneducated and elderly people are victims of such frauds. The only thing a user is left after being a victim of such cyber crimes is regret.
False and Fake news
India has been the most affected nation in the world when it comes to spreading and receiving fake news and rumours. Since the last few years, spreading fake news has increased drastically in India, most of them being communal. This has resulted in riots, hatred and communal disharmony across the nation. The Supreme court of India has declared spreading fake news and rumours as crime and have warned people against such ill practices. Our nation has seen huge consequences because of fake news and not forwarding them when you receive, is the only way we can save ourselves from getting trapped.
People involved in making and spreading fake news have not spared even COVID-19 and in the initial phase of the lockdown, we saw many rumours related to the vaccine and treatment of the novel coronavirus. There are certain agencies who are working tirelessly to check and bust myths that are being spread every day in the form of hatred and misinformation and we need people who show maturity and restrict themselves from forwarding such news for the wellbeing of our country.
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