Kaspersky has launched a digital toolkit that teaches cybersecurity best practices to students and educators. As the pandemic continues and schools undergo renewed closure with online learning models, the education sector continues to attract cybercriminals’ attention over the internet. Around 168,550 users encountered various threats, disguised as popular learning platforms between January to June 2020, which was an increase of 20 percent compared to the same period in 2019. The number has only continued to grow from July to December as January 2021 saw a 60 percent increase compared to the first half of 2020.
The most popular lure was Zoom that witnessed more than 300 million daily meeting participants, followed by Moodle and Google Meet.
Around 98 percent of threats encountered were not a virus but riskware and adware. The risk consists of various files – from download managers and browser bars that remotely administer tools, which can carry out actions on the computer without the user’s consent. On the other hand, Adware bombards users with unwanted ads, while Trojans make up for roughly one percent of the threats that are encountered.
Users generally encounter these threats disguised as online course platforms or popular video meeting apps via fake application installers on unofficial websites designed to look like the original platforms or emails, in the form of special offers or notifications.
To help students and educators stay secure, Kaspersky has put together various resources, including an online course that teaches cybersecurity best practices via digital tools in the classroom.