The Internet has changed the way we communicate and socialise, especially with the increased popularity of social networks. As social networks gain more presence in the digital world, a growing threat to online users is that cybercriminals will take advantage of these trusted environments to launch their malicious attacks. The Growing Popularity Of Social NetworksSocial networks provide infinite opportunities to stay connected with friends and family, and to be informed of the latest news and trends. In a country where 65 per cent of the population and 75 per cent of netizens are below the age of 35 years (Census and IMAI), social media is enabling unprecedented connectivity. Social networks have become such an integral part of our online lives with over 76.1 million social networking users in India, according to eMarketer.With the pervasiveness of social networks in our online world, it’s more important than ever to take steps against being the next victim of cybercrime. In India,the Norton Cybercrime Report 2012 found that 80 online adults fall prey to cybercrime every minute and that more than half of online users have fallen victim to cybercrime on social networks. Coupled with the fact that more than half the population (56 per cent) does not understand the risk of cybercrime or how to protect themselves online, Indians are running the risk of being a key targetof cybercriminals. The New Playground For CybercriminalsIdentity theft is akey threat to many social networkusers, as millions of online users use their personal information to register with social networks. The availability of such large amounts ofpersonal data coupled with the trust that people place in their social networksmakes it a rich playground for cybercriminals. \While there is greater awareness around threats like spam and phishing, cybercriminals are using more sophisticated forms of malware to steal identities and information from individuals. Ranging from “likejacking” to shortened URLs being used to mask the malicious destinations of links that claimed to take users to legitimate videos/websites, cybercriminals are getting smarter about leveraging the huge user base and trusted environments of social networks. Not only this, cybercriminals can ‘hijack’ an online account in a number of ways to view and steal private information, using a number of methods to exploit social networking users. The following are most common:Phishing attacks: Cybercriminals can trick users into giving away their login credentials through fake pages that resemble the login pages of popular webmail or social networking sites.Scammers: Cybercriminals can use compromised or “hacked” accounts to lure other users into believing that they are receiving messages from a friend, when in fact, they’re trying to get money or other information.Exploiting User Information: When users give away their location online with status updates and location-based services, cybercriminals can use this information to target victims offline in “the real world.”Malicious Links: Cybercriminals plant links that give them access to users’ web sessions by compromising “cookies,” or information that is stored after login to validate users’ credentials.Here’s one example of how cybercriminals leveraged Twitter to launch their attacks. Ahead of the iPad 3 launch, some Twitter users who tweeted about the new tablet received targeted replies from scammers offering the new device for free.Links were masked behind URL shortening services and led to affiliate pages asking for personal information, such as email address and shipping information.Future Trends: The Monetisation Of Social Networks Introduces New DangersAs consumers, we place a high level of trust in social media—from the sharing of personal details, to spending money on game credits, to gifting items to friends. As these networks start to find new ways to monetise their platforms by allowing members to buy and send real gifts, the growing social spending trend also provides cybercriminals with new ways to lay the groundwork for attack. Norton anticipates an increase in malware attacks that steal payment credentials in social networks and trick users into providing payment details, and other personal and potentially valuable information, to fake social networks. This may include fake gift notifications and email messages requesting home addresses and other personal information. While providing non-financial information might seem innocuous, cybercriminals sell and trade this information with one another to combine with information they already have about you, helping them create a profile of you they can use to gain access to your other accounts.Here are some recommended tips for users to stay safe online:Don't talk to, or accept friend invitations from unknown senders on social networks, IM, online forums or virtual worlds.Don't post your home address, phone number, pictures or other personal details about yourself on public sites – the information you post will live on these sites forever and can also make you an easier target for creeps and bad guys.Do make sure you have a strong password (not your pet’s name, birthday or address) and don’t share it with anyone – not even your best friends, and not even “just once”. Select a password that cannot be easily guessed. Strong passwords have eight characters or more and use a combination of letters, numbers and symbols (e.g., # $ % ! ?). Try not to use the same password for every service you use online, and change passwords on a regular basis, at least every 90 daysDo create groups of friends, relatives or other special sub-groups of friends on these social networking platforms and share photos, video and comments to the restricted group.Do limit the access to your profile from search options and make sure you remove unwanted applications or limit their access to your informationDo make sure you select the most secure (i.e. https) settings whenever they are offered, and notifications of account access from new devicesDo maintain an up-to-date browser and operating system. Browsers and operating systems usually improve their security settings and you can benefit from it by updating to the latest ones. Not updating can leave you vulnerable to attacks and could lead to private information being lost or stolen.Do use free online tools such as Norton Safe Web Lite which provides a safer search experience by warning you of dangerous Web sites right in your search results, so you can search, browse, and shop online without worry.(The author is Internet Safety Advocate & Director, Norton by Symantec, Asia)
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The Symantec Internet Security Threat Report, reveals that India has seen a 280 per cent increase in bot infections which is continuing to spread to a larger number of emerging cities in India. With the prevalence of such infections, it is not surprising that the country accounts for nearly 15 percent of global bot-net spam, responsible for disseminating an estimated 280 million spam messages per day worldwide. In addition the report highlights a 42 per cent surge during 2012 in global targeted attacks, as compared to the prior year. Designed to steal intellectual property, these targeted cyber espionage attacks are increasingly hitting small businesses, which are the target of 31 per cent of these attacks across the world. Small businesses are attractive targets themselves and a stepping stone to ultimately reaching larger companies."This year's ISTR shows a clear focus among cybercriminals at targeting individuals, systems and organizations where the highest profits can be made," said Anand Naik, Managing Director-Sales, India & SAARC, Symantec. "India continues to rank high in the list for even the most basic threats, pointing to an urgent need for improved awareness levels and security measures, even as the country's adoption of Internet and mobile technologies is on the rise." Emerging Indian Cities Remain on Cyber Attackers' RadarWhile cities including Bhubaneswar, Surat, Cochin, Jaipur, Vishakhapatnam and Indore continue to see bot infections, some of the new entrants inducted to the list of bot infected locations in 2012 are Kota, Ghaziabad and Mysore. Bot infected computer activities can be classified as actively attacking bots or bots that send out spam such as spam zombies. Spam zombies are remotely controlled, compromised systems specifically designed to send out large volumes of junk or unsolicited email messages. The email messages can be used to deliver malicious code and phishing attempts. Globally, India is ranked first for spam zombies with 17 per cent of spam zombies located in the country. Evidently the country is responsible for disseminating into cyberspace an estimated 280 million spam messages per day. Small Businesses Are the Path of Least ResistanceTargeted attacks are growing rapidly among businesses with fewer than 250 employees. Globally, small businesses are now the target of 31 per cent of all attacks, a threefold increase from 2011. Attackers hone in on small businesses that may often lack adequate security practices and infrastructure. An indicator of this trend extending to India is that small businesses received the highest number of phishing and virus-bearing emails. One in 661 emails was a phishing email for small Indian businesses and one in 248 emails carried a virus, while for larger Indian enterprises with 1,000-1,500 employees, one in 4,751 emails was a phishing email and one in 1,611 carried a virus.Increase in Cyber Espionage : Knowledge Workers Face Targeted AttacksThe global average number of targeted attacks per day in 2012 was 116, compared with 82 in 2011 and 77 in 2010, recording a 42 per cent increase in targeted attacks. Targeted attacks such as Disttrack in 2012 are commonly used for the purposes of industrial espionage to gain access to the confidential information or intellectual property on a compromised computer system or network.Worldwide, the targets for attack in 2012 were knowledge workers who create the intellectual property that attackers want (27 per cent of all targets in 2012) and those in sales (24 per cent in 2012). The presence of a large number of knowledge workers makes India, a potential target for attackers, with IT services featuring in the top list of industries targeted for spam, phishing and viruses. In fact, India was home to 16 percent of viruses and globally, it ranked second for virus prevalence, just behind the United States. India also ranked third for overall malicious code.Mobile Malware Put Consumers and Businesses at Risk Symantec's recent mobility surveys reveal that 68 per cent1 Indians are addicted to their mobile devices and 72 per cent2 of Indian businesses faced mobility incidents due to malware infections, spam incidents, exposures of information, breach of information due to lost/stolen devices and phishing/social engineering instances. The focus on exploiting mobile devices will only grow with the increasing dependence on mobile devices for everything from simple email to critical apps and even mobile payments. In fact, Symantec predicts that 2013 will be a watershed year for mobile malware.Last year, mobile malware increased by 58 per cent, and 50 per cent of mobile malware created in 2012 attempted to steal information or track movements. Symantec believes that whether cybercriminals are attacking computers, mobile phones or social networks, their ultimate goal is to obtain personal information including banking details, phone numbers and email addresses of friends and business associates, and even steal the target's identity.
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The explosive growth of smartphones and tablets have kept cybercriminals commensurately busy in 2012 and there is scope for more to come in 2013. The very latest one, keeping with times, carries out social engineering attacks, says a Symantec report.India is one of the biggest mobile phone markets in the world, with 860 million mobile subscribers. A recent Symantec report found that 69 per cent Indians connect to the internet with their mobile phones. Last year, across the world mobile malware increased by 58 per cent, and 50 per cent of mobile malware created in 2012 attempted to steal information or track movements, according to the latest Symantec Internet Security Threat Report volume 18. But the biggest threat so far in 2013 has been the social engineering attack.In April 2013, Symantec was alerted to a series of sophisticated social-engineering attacks. India ranked among the top 10 countries in the world targeted by this new threat and this is how it works:The victim receives a phone call from the attacker who impersonates an employee or business associate, asking them in French to process an invoice received via email. However, the email typically contains a malicious link or an attachment, which is actually a variant of W32.Shadesrat, a Remote Access Trojan (RAT). W32.Shadesrat (a.k.a. Blackshades) is used by a variety of attackers of varying skill levels. A publically available Trojan, it can be licensed for as little as $40-$100 a year. In June 2012, as part of a global sting operation carried out by the FBI, one of the contributors to the Blackshades project, Michael Hogue (a.k.a. xVisceral), was arrested. However, this RAT is still under active development.These attacks began as early as February 2013 though it was only in April that phone calls were placed before sending the victim the phishing email, possibly to increase the chances of success. This reflects that even as spam and phishing continue to grow in volume, they are becoming more targeted. According to Symantec’s Internet Security Threat Report, It was estimated that 280 million spam messages were disseminated from India in 2012. For Indian SMBs, one in 661 emails is a phishing email and one in 248 emails carries a virus.The victims of these attacks generally tend to be accountants or employees working within the financial department of organisations, providing access to sensitive company account information. These employees may also have the authority to facilitate transactions on behalf of the organisation. Since handling invoices is something they would do on a regular basis, this lure has the potential to be quite convincing. The employees would also provide a useful source of information to use in subsequent social-engineering attacks. Invoices and contract agreements would provide the attacker with all of the elements (email, phone, and relevant purchase/sales agreements) to continue executing these well prepared attacks.Each element of this attack requires careful planning and contributes to the overall success rate of the attack. The obviously carry out a close study of the target and obtain not just the email ID but phone number as well.How Can Users & Organisations Protect Themselves?These attacks are continuing to this day and organisations need to be aware of these increasingly sophisticated social-engineering attacks. The attacker may have limited information, so asking additional questions on a call may help to determine the legitimacy of the request. Organisations also need to be aware that personally identifiable employee information that exists outside of your enterprise, even in the form of an invoice, can be used against you if a business associate becomes compromised. Employees working with very sensitive information should store this in a secure location, ensure that it is encrypted, and only access it from a fully patched computer with adequate security solutions in place.
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It’s no secret that personal and professional online networks have drastically changed the dynamics of the brand-consumer relationship. This stems from the fundamental desire of today’s consumers to participate in a dialogue rather than just be spoken to. What this means is that there is a shift away from the traditional one-way, funnel marketing to a two-way non-linear/ decentralised marketing model. While this entails many changes for marketers in today’s world, I’d like to go back to the basics in this article and focus today on the transformation of one core concept – “know your audience”. In early years this took the form of purely geographic segmentation (e.g., running ads only in certain target metros) and then evolved to include demographic segmentation. Today’s online world allows marketers to take things to a whole new level with much more sophisticated levels of targeting and behavioral segmentation that leverages data from a consumer’s professional or personal graph and increasingly his / her social actions.Indian marketers are already using social media to help inform and influence the brand choice of consumers. However, the mistake several of them make stems from treating all websites and networks the same. Not only does context matter (since the fundamental purpose or utility is very different across social networks), but we’re now learning that the same user has different mindsets on the different networks.A recent primary research study titled The Mindset Divide conducted by TNS, in partnership with LinkedIn, helps underscore how consumers display two very different mindsets when they engage on different social platforms – they go to personal networks to “spend time” while going to professional networks to “invest time”.We would all agree that the best kind of marketing establishes an emotional connection. In fact, in a research study by IPA that compared 880 international case studies, emotional campaigns were found to be almost twice more likely to generate large profit gains than rational ones. But this difference in mindset means that the type of emotional connection marketers try to create must be different too – on social/personal networks, consumersshow emotions around entertainment and memories because the drivers that keep users on the site are their desires to socialise, stay in touch, be entertained or pass time. People on these sites are most often in a casual modewith conversations revolving around lighter discussions of life.On the other hand, the emotions of professional networkersrevolve around their goals, aspirations or ambition. This purposeful mindset is driven by their desire to stay updated and be more productive and successful. They do this by investing time in by maintainingtheir professional identity, making useful contacts,searching for newopportunities and staying in touch. Split Strategy for Consumer Mind Splits For marketers, staying on top of their game will mean taking these different mindsets into consideration when planning their brand engagement strategy. The greatest impact of this is on content. Analysing what network members consume when “spending time” and what gets their attention when “investing time” will determine the manner in which brand information is shaped and shared. On personal networks the content they are looking for is very much in line with the context of those networks – getting information on their family & friends, exploring personal interests, and getting entertainment updates. However, for professional networks, consumers expect content and insights to make them more successful (e.g., tips to improve themselves professionally, help them make better decisions etc.)A recent Nielsen global study highlighted the internet as a key influencer to their purchase decisions for a vast majority of consumers (electronics was highest at 81 per cent and for electronics and 60 per cent the lowest for personal hair-care products) with those in Asia Pacific. Moreover social and brand pages were listed as important influence sources. If you join this statistic with the recent McKinsey quarterly article which states that 67 per cent of all customer decisions, both B2B and B2C, are driven by experiences with brands and categories rather than purely price, then it comes as no surprise to learn that “updates from brands” surfaced as an important content stream folks expect from professional networks. What was surprising was the spread wherein –“updates from brands” was ranked at #2 by professional networkers and #9 for personal/social networkers.They expect to hear from brands 26 per cent more on their professional networks than they do on personal ones. But equally interesting is the fact that they don’t expect the brand to just talk about their product but rather focus on leveraging knowledge that brands have to help the consumer (e.g., a healthcare company helping people with expert tips on how to stay healthy).And while you can expect higher social engagement due to the greater relevance, there is impact for marketers even beyond this. For example, Citibank engaged professional women by choosing to focus on user-generated topics relevant to this audience (rather than highlighting their products) and was rewarded with 2.5x more engagement but on top of this, they also had an almost ~50 per cent higher unaided brand awareness. And the real prize for marketers comes from the fact that social media seamlessly enables a compounding effect on the impact their campaigns garner. Virality ensures that your message rapidly spreads from a few to many, while the inherent trust associated with a personal / professional connection helps make things even more relevant and increase chances of consideration and conversion. But this entire flywheel is contingent on ensuring an emotional connection which is based on relevant content.Publishers are recognising these trends and making investments in reducing the number of ads on the page and instead attempting to boost relevance of their content. However savvy marketers, also need to thread sensibly these insights to devise more targeted & relevant campaigns. Do you know your audience, and if so, do your campaigns appropriately leverage the mindset differences across the different social networks?(The author is Country Manager, LinkedIn India)
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The number of Indians using mobile devices to get online is growing at a steady pace, and the availability of affordable smartphones is an important factor fueling this growth. Opera Software's special State of the Android Mobile Web report takes a closer look into the mobile browsing behavior (on their flagship Opera Mini browser) of these smartphone users in India.Over the last year, Opera Mini users on smartphones in India increased by 136.6 per cent which constitutes 19 per cent of the total Opera Mini users in India. The survey finds that almost 50 per cent of the top hundred domains visited by Opera Mini's Android users are related to news and information, search, price comparison and e-commerce. The top 3 categories of domains based on data usage are social networking, search and cricket. Some 21.7 per cent of all data used by Opera Mini's Android users is for Facebook, followed by Google at 5.8 per cent and ESPNcricinfo at 1.7 per cent. With 67 per cent of these users in India using the browser to access Facebook from their mobile devices, the majority number of webpages viewed are also from Facebook. Click For Complete InfographicSamsung tops the list of Android devices used to access the web via Opera Mini. In all, 9 out of the top-10 Android handsets are from Samsung. A further breakdown of the top-100 Android devices of Indian Opera Mini users confirms Samsung's leading position, with a 31 per cent market share, followed by Sony at 23 per cent and Micromax at 15 per cent.Each of the top-10 Android devices cost less than Rs. 10,000, with the exception of the Samsung Galaxy S2, which ranks last. A mobile device packed with a smart operating system and multiple features, all while fitting within an average users' budget, is proving to be a good deal for users.In addition to being the most preferred browser on basic phones, Opera Mini is also being used by millions of smartphone users in India. The data consumed by Opera Mini users on smartphones is significantly higher than the data consumed by Opera Mini users on basic phones.Among Opera Mini users, the number of webpages viewed by an Android user is 29.5 per cent higher than the monthly page views by an average user. Opera Mini compresses webpages by up to 90 per cent before sending them to the device, as a result webpages open faster and users save on data costs. Data compressed for an Android user is 127 per cent higher than the data compressed for an average user. Higher usage and compression rates clearly indicate that Opera Mini users on Android browse more and save more money than an average Opera Mini user.
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Hackers took control of the Associated Press Twitter account on Tuesday and sent a false tweet about explosions in the White House that briefly sent US financial markets reeling. In the latest high-profile hacking incident involving social media service Twitter, an official @AP account reported that two explosions at the White House injured President Barack Obama.AP spokesman Paul Colford quickly confirmed the tweet was "bogus," and White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters that Obama was fine, just minutes after the tweet hit a little after 1 p.m. (1700 GMT).But within three minutes of the tweet's release, virtually all U.S. markets took a plunge on the false news in what one trader described as "pure chaos."The FBI and the US Securities and Exchange Commission both said they were probing the incident. FBI spokeswoman Jenny Shearer did not provide further details beyond confirming an investigation. SEC Commissioner Daniel Gallagher told Reuters in an interview that the agency was looking into the bogus tweet's impact on the markets."I can't tell you exactly what the facts are at this point or what we are looking for, but for sure we want to understand major swings like that, however short it was," Gallagher said.Reuters data showed the tweet briefly wiped out $136.5 billion of the S&P 500 index's value before markets recovered. Some traders attributed the sharp fall and bounce-back to automatic electronic trading.A group calling itself the Syrian Electronic Army, which is supportive of that country's leader, President Bashar al-Assad, in its two-year civil war, claimed responsibility on its own Twitter feed for the AP hack.The group has in the past taken credit for similar invasions into Twitter accounts of National Public Radio, BBC, CBS' "60 Minutes" program and Reuters News.A Twitter spokesman declined to comment on the Tuesday breach, saying the company did not comment "on individual accounts for privacy and security reasons."Twitter SecurityAt a time when cybersecurity and hacking have become top national security concerns, Twitter and its reach to hundreds of millions of users is coming under growing scrutiny for the risk of privacy breaches on the site.Stewart Baker, a cybersecurity lawyer at Steptoe & Johnson in Washington, said there was plenty of blame to spread around regarding Tuesday's incident. "AP should have had better passwords, Twitter should have gone to at least optional two-factor authentication months ago, and guys on the Street really should be thinking twice before they trade on Twitter reports. That's risky," he said.For years, security experts have called on Twitter to introduce a two-factor authentication measure, which requires a two-step process to log in and which they say would greatly reduce such breaches.In recent months, the San Francisco-based company has hired security experts and posted job listings for software engineers, who could help the company roll out two-factor authentication.AP, whose Twitter accounts @AP and @AP_Mobile were suspended, reported that hackers made repeated attacks before Tuesday's incident to steal the passwords of AP journalists.A New Low' For Investor CommunityThe false "BREAKING" tweet, which went out to the AP's nearly 2 million Twitter followers, sent the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average falling sharply before they recovered. Stock and bond futures also were affected. "It's a new low in the capital market sales and trading and investor community," said Russ Certo, managing director in fixed income at Brean Capital in New York.Several US lawmakers with influence over US policy on trading have pledged to bring new scrutiny to the practice of high-frequency trading and its power to disrupt markets."It is disturbing that the markets were so easily manipulated by false information," Democratic Senator Jack Reed from Rhode Island who sits on the Banking Committee, said on Tuesday. "Congress and regulators, particularly the SEC, should closely examine this case and social media policies to try to prevent this from recurring."After the false tweet, the benchmark S&P 500 dropped 14 points to as low as 1,563.03 before recovering, all in about five seconds. The Dow Jones Industrial Average temporarily dropped 143.5 points, or 0.98 per cent."You have to wonder (about) this system we've built based on technology and speed," said Joe Saluzzi, co-manager of trading at Themis Trading in Chatham, New Jersey. "The SEC's mission is to protect the individual investor. And they don't feel protected today," he said. "Events like today shatter confidence, and the problem is you don't get confidence back tomorrow."Earlier this year, Bloomberg's trading platform started incorporating tweets after the SEC clarified how companies can disclose material information through social media.On Tuesday, spokeswoman Sabrina Briefel said the fake tweet appeared on the Bloomberg terminal. She said the company was not reconsidering its decision to include tweets.(Reuters)
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“Internet here feels like America in 1994,” said Google Chairman Eric Schmidt at a Google event in the capital. Schmidt, who is on his first visit to India said internet in India, is under-penetrated because of lack of adequate connectivity.“Let me tell you a simple formula. Take fibre optic cables and run them into the ground everywhere the government can imagine. Every road, every ditch, every piece of land- bury fibre optic cables. These will amplify and scale in 20-30 years,” he says.He also pointed that India was lagging behind exploiting the power of Internet because of the telecom industry which is under-capitalised and had failed to invest in high-speed networks.Connectivity Is The SolutionFor Schmidt, “connectivity” is the solution to India’s every problem be it education, health services or banking.“Education would probably improve through mobile devices. Eventually the mobile applications will be more powerful as they are more personal,” says Schmidt. “You have a large underserved banking population. Through a very clever system involving a UID it will be possible for people to have a unique name tied to an e-commerce banking system,” he adds.According to Schmidt, as in the last two years, mobile will continue to be the next big thing and that advertising, which is a key source of generating money for Google, will have to evolve around mobile advertising.Read Also: Chrome, Android OS To Stay Separate: Google's Schmidt“The future is tablets, the rumored Apple watch or Google Glass,” he said, adding that Google was focusing on mobile ads and that they will come at par with the rest of the ads in future. When asked if conversion rates might not be as good on mobile as on PC, he said PC growth was slowing anyway and that the conversion rate on mobile will be good.“Google has showed that advertising can be a science as well as an art,” he says adding mobile too will be equally successful as it gives more information about the user.Rubbishing rumours that he would be quitting Google, Schmidt said his plans of selling nearly 40 per cent stake in Google is only for asset diversification. “Google is my home,”And Some More On Privacy...Amid hearty laughs, Schmidt raised a serious concern over the issue of privacy that arises out of having too much information available over the internet. “I am concerned that we need to fight for our privacy or we’ll lose it. The reason why I am concerned about this is that it’s natural for such technology to aggregate information about citizens.” Citing a recent trip to Mexico, Schmidt said the situation where the government kept a close watch on all citizens to the extent that a dossier was available on each individual. While this is done in order to deal with the drug killings and other such real problems of the country, there are serious repercussions that could occur if the information is passed on to an irresponsible government, claims Schmidt.With the inerasable memory of the Internet, Schmidt pointed out that a mistake is never forgotten. However he ended with a hopeful note, claiming that these were hurdles that would have to be dealt with through conversation, because the value of the internet is profoundly positive.
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There continues to be an upward swing in the Indian job market as the Monster Employment Index India (for February 2013) has registered an impressive 16 per cent year on year growth since February 2012. 21 of the 27 industry sectors — from entertainment to manufacturing — monitored by the Monster Employment Index registered expansion in online recruitment activity during this period. The index is a monthly gauge of online job posting activity based on a real-time review of millions of employer job opportunities culled from a large representative selection of career websites and online job listings across India. It is an aggregate measure of the change in job listings across the industry. The online job posting activity reached its peak in December 2012, according to the figures reported by the index.."The Monster Employment Index India exhibits positive annual growth owing to cautious 'optimism'. This is reflective of the confidence that employers are showing in the resiliency of the Indian economy," says Sanjay Modi, Managing Director, Monster.com (India/ Middle- East/ South East Asia). The Shipping Marine and sector saw a steep 59 per cent increase in job postings followed by the media and entertainment sector which was up by 41 per cent. The printing and packaging industry, garments, textiles and NGO sectors also witnessed a healthy growth rate. The manufacturing sector witnessed the sharpest decline in job postings which fell by 10 per cent. Engineering, oil and petroleum industries always confronted negative growth in online job listing. There has been a soaring 43 per cent rise in job postings in the arts and creative services sector. Consequently there has been a steady decline in the number of positions listed for senior management roles on employment portals. Marketing, communication and softfare services recorded a negarive growth rate, Chandigarh tops the list of cities which have seen the highest increase in online recruitment activity with a YoY growth of 39 per cent. Ahmedabad (37 per cent), Jaipur (37 per cent), Kolkata (36 per cent)and Chennai (31 per cent)are the other top growth cities. Coimbatore, a city which witnessed a great surge in online job postings in during October-November 2012 features in the negative growth region (-1 per cent) in February 2013.
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Those of us who are parents or care-givers will do just about anything to ensure the good health and well-being of our children. A constant worry for most parents is the thought of how to best prepare kids for tough situations and adversities, as the world we grew up is different from the one they now face. While new technologies have brought with them endless opportunities to learn and engage, it has also brought with it new challenges and pressures, one such being the impact of cyberbullying. As parents we are not aware of it and if we do sometimes, we may not know how to address it.As more and more kids access Internet to communicate with their friends and for research-based projects, we also need to remember that if left unmonitored, there can be a dark and dangerous side to the Internet. Whilst much has been said about social networking, I believe that social networking sites are not "the problem". Rather, it's the way they are used that can be an issue.It is important to understand that the issue of cyberbullying can vary from one age group to the other. While younger children online may visit wrong websites exposing themselves to adult and violent material that is inappropriate for their age, older children with access to mobile phones & emails may face threats such as sexting, privacy and reputations issues, online scams etc . Last year, a 14-year-old student Nishant was bullied online by his seniors as he was better at the game of basketball which led him to withdraw from his favorite sport. He finally confided in his father, who sought the help of a counselor.It, therefore, becomes critical for parents to identify the signs and source of the damaging content at an early stage to be able to provide the right guidance to help their children avoid distressing experiences. Imparting online etiquettes and teaching children ways to handle common online problems can help them better prepare for online experiences. The Schoolyard Is Now 24/7While we might have grown up seeing bullies at recess or lunch in the schoolyard, it's safe to assume that most of us didn't grow up using mobile phones at school, or having our lives documented through blogs or social networking sites from an early age. For many of us, our 'digital footprint' didn't even begin until we may have been in the work environment for a number of years. However today, social networking and mobile phones can be accessed round the clock, which means that bullying can be more invasive than ever before. Additionally, bullies can remain anonymous online if they choose, masking their actions and making it harder for targets or supervisory elders to spot them. According to Norton Online Family Report 2011, 79 per cent of kids in India have had a negative experience online, and about 84 per cent kids on social networks found themselves in unpleasant situations online. The fact that 32 per cent of parents confirmed that their child has experience cyberbullying (Ipsos poll) indicate the prevalence of this issue. While we may not be able to easily relate to the growing pains of our 'digital native' children who wouldn't know life without a mobile or Internet, we need to understand and appreciate some of the unique issues they face by talking about it with them.Spotting The SignsThe Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University provides a good summary of the types of children who may be targeted by bullying. This includes, children changing schools, either due to a move or transition from primary to secondary schools, children of greater or lower family income levels as compared to the average and children whose appearance may deviate from the “norm” (overweight, underweight, wearing glasses, disabled, etc.).According to the research, children who bully others also tend to have similar characteristics; they often have high levels of energy, an ability to manipulate others, take delight in getting their own way and have difficulty with expressing empathy or dealing with emotions and conflict. If a child starts to withdraw from school or their social life online, is moody or easily distressed, has damage to his personal possessions, has difficulty sleeping or unexplained cuts, bruises or marks on their skin – then they might be facing bullying at school or online. If you suspect your child of being a bully, or being bullied, the first step to addressing the issue is to talk about it with her or him, and attempt to get them to open up and have an honest chat about it, without fear of repercussions or restrictions from devices or the internet.Minimising The RiskIt is important that parents pay attention to clues and signs to predict whether their children could be a target. Parents need to talk with their kids, because children are less likely to bring it up on their own. There are things parents can do to minimise the risks and ensure kids know what to do if they are picked on by a bully. Set ground rules together on internet usage – sit down and develop some ground rules for internet usage together with your kids so that they are included. The recent story of the mother in the US who gave her son an iPhone with an 18-point contract including “Mother will always know the password” is an interesting example of setting the rules and the boundaries.Monitor your children’s internet usage – depending on their age, you may wish to limit the times that children have access to the internet or their mobile phones. At the very least, you should also be aware of what sites they visit and for what purpose. Software such as Norton Family and Norton 360 Multi-Device are tools that parents can rely on for staying abreast of their children’s online activities and at the same time securing their computers and mobile devices.Don’t wait until it’s too late to have the talk – if you wait until your child is in high school, chances are that they have already been exposed to bullying behavior online. If you’re talking to your child about the ‘birds and the bees’ then consider having other conversations with them about their online behavior, and bullying.Keep talking about it with your children - Sadly, bullying of any nature can have devastating effects on our children, particularly if it is ongoing and relentless. Tragic stories like those of a bright and confident teenager, Ayesha who committed suicide after she was constantly harassed by a male friend who she befriended on a social networking website, are shocking examples, where parents were not aware that their daughter was reeling under tremendous pressure and trauma.Take the opportunity to spend time with your children, have open conversations with them regularly and encourage them to share their daily experiences. As parents our responsibilities towards our children carry on well beyond their real (flesh and blood) life to their virtual lives where the boundaries are blur and everyone is “faceless”. (Ritesh Chopra, Country Sales Manager, India & SAARC, Norton by Symantec)
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Find, Follow, RetweetIdentify your Twitter personality. Find the right mix of people, follow them, follow who they're following, and retweet interesting tweets.Tip: Use tools such as WeFollow and Tweepi to find interesting tweepleEngage Don't stay idle. Tweet! Use hashtags (#) smartly, follow what’s trending. Join relevant conversations by mentioning (@) people directly.Tip: Use #chats to find interesting chats and tweet at least hourly Be originalGo beyond retweeting. Blog and then tweet it out. Be clever, quick and opinionated in your tweets. Mention tweeple with large followings.Quality over quantityDon't spam your followers. Link selective tweets to other platforms (tweets don't always work on LinkedIn & FB), and retweet more carefully. Market yourselfGive links to your Twitter handle on Google+, FB, LinkedIn, your card, blog, website... everywhere. More visibility equals more accessibility.Tip: Use integration social media tools such as Hootsuite, Tweetdeck and Paper.li to target the maximum audience.Compiled by Shruti ChakrabortyTwitter: (at)chockro(This story was published in Businessworld Issue Dated 25-03-2013)
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