DISRUPTIVE TECH library of tagged photos . He was able to regain access within 27 hours and set up his 2-factor authentication .
Stacey , on the other hand , quit social media . The ordeal was too much of an embarrassment and created so much anxiety for her that she decided the whole persona in a digital realm was not for her .
Ian Lauth , Senior Technical
Marketing Manager , F5
But this is not unusual . On several occasions , consumers have stopped using a platform when their account is hacked . Panic , embarrassment , and shame are not the sort of feelings we want customers and end-users to have when they rely on our products . And while this example may be specific to social media , the sentiment is something we can all share .
Whether it ’ s social media , FinTech , e-commerce or any other organisation with an exploitable user base , credential stuffing is a cat-and-mouse game that is here to stay-and with eyebrow-raising impact .
Javelin Strategy and Research in their 2021 Identity Fraud Study , reported that account takeover ( ATO ) fraud resulted in over US $ 6 billion in total losses in 2020 . When companies create new defences , hackers develop tools to bypass these safeguards and the cycle continues .
So , how can businesses fight back ?
In a recent Aite Group report , risk executives from financial institutions , FinTech lenders and e-commerce companies were interviewed to learn how they were protecting themselves from the escalating volume of ATO attacks . Some of the key takeaways were :
America , followed by a screenshot from his supposed bank account .
While it doesn ’ t take a cybersecurity expert to recognise this was a scam , it could nonetheless prove to be an effective phishing tactic since it is coming from the trusted source ’ s actual account within a social ecosystem not known for abuse .
• Most consumers use the same usernames and passwords across websites , creating a vulnerability exploited by organised crime rings .
• The available attack surface continues to expand making detection and mitigation more complex .
• Organisations need a solution that leverages realtime data analytics to keep pace with automated attacks and block malicious activity before it affects the business .
• Firms with robust defences will see attack volumes decrease as criminals focus their attacks on easier targets .
Curious about the sophistication of these attackers – and because I ’ ll never pass up an opportunity to speak directly to our black-hatted counterparts – I responded to the story to see how effective their messaging was .
But it was an awful ordeal for both friends . Trevor finally used Instagram ’ s facial recognition verification process to scan his face and compare it against their endless
Beyond the obvious bottom-line impacts of ATO attacks , it is important to remember that these crimes have a real human impact . Stopping fraud isn ’ t only about saving money . It is just as critical for preventing the kind of human trauma that is surreptitiously corroding the fundamental fibres of a more ideal digital future . Just like the physical world , what we want is safety , security , and trust . p
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