Paris 2024 Olympics: Cyber Threats And Public Wifi Security Worries Loom
As anticipation builds for the mega sporting event, cybersecurity and online activity are becoming major focal points of concern
The Paris 2024 Summer Olympics is set to kick off on Friday, 26 July and run through 11 August. As anticipation builds for the event, cybersecurity and online activity are becoming major focal points of concern.
DNS Traffic and Internet Interest
Cloudflare’s analysis reveals a noted growth in DNS traffic for official Olympic-related websites, pointing to a widespread global interest. According to data from Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 resolver, France leads with 24 per cent of DNS requests for these sites, followed by the United Kingdom (20 per cent) and the United States (17 per cent). Spikes in traffic have been observed on 8 February 2024 since the start of the initial ticket sales phase and again on 10 April. This increased activity shows the growing anticipation for the Games online.
Cybersecurity Threats and Email Activity
The Olympics’ high profile has attracted a notable growth in phishing and spam emails. Cloudflare reported an increase of 694 per cent in emails with “Olympics” or “Paris 2024” in the subject line during the week of 15 July, compared to earlier in the year.
Of these emails, 1.5 per cent were identified as spam, while 0.2 per cent were classified as malicious. This uptick in malicious activity points to a heightened interest from cybercriminals seeking to exploit the event for fraudulent purposes.
Public Wi-Fi Security Concerns
As per Kaspersky’s Global Research and Analysis Team (GReAT), Paris’s free wifi networks have serious security concerns. Out of nearly 25,000 free Wi-Fi spots analysed, 25 per cent exhibited weak or nonexistent encryption. Only 6 per cent of these networks used the latest WPA3 security protocol, leaving many users vulnerable to data theft and interception.
Additionally, about 20 per cent of the networks employed outdated WPS algorithms, which are highly susceptible to hacking.
“Like the athletes preparing for the Games, cybercriminals are also gearing up to exploit the influx of visitors to Paris. Open and poorly secured Wi-Fi networks are particularly attractive to cybercriminals, as they can be used to intercept and manipulate data transfers, including sensitive personal and financial information,” said Amin Hasbini, Head of META Research at Kaspersky’s GReAT.
Recommendations for Visitors
In light of these findings, visitors to Paris for the Olympics are advised to exercise caution when using public Wi-Fi. To mitigate risks, travelers should use virtual private networks (VPNs) to secure their connections, avoid accessing sensitive information on public networks and be vigilant for signs of phishing attempts.
