Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and countless other social media platforms are already part of people’s everyday lives. We check from our mobile phones, computers, and tablets what’s happening with our friends and family on social media. However, we often don’t take the time to think about the risks that exist within them and how we can avoid them.

Due to the large number of people who use and depend on social media, these platforms have become a target for criminals to attack their victims

Risks on Social Media

Viruses: They spread through popular messages, mainly on Facebook, leading to fake links or through the Java programming language that prompts you to download and install malicious files on your computer to steal confidential information or passwords.

Phishing: This method involves stealing information through identity theft. While this action is more common in email messages, on social media, criminals can create fake Twitter accounts or Facebook pages for banking entities, making individuals believe it’s the real entity. They then invite them to update information or access the (fake) website of the institution to launch an attack. 

Harassment: By having information, photos, or videos visible to everyone on social media, one can attract the attention of a harasser. If privacy settings are not configured on social media, anyone can access everything we post, posing a threat to our integrity.

Information Theft: On social media, we share a lot of information. It might not be as risky as sharing a password or credit card number, but with this data, many cybercriminals create fake profiles to access people close to us and then target them. To prevent this, configure your Twitter, Facebook, and other social media accounts to allow only your friends to see your posts.

It is important to note that to prevent these frauds, thefts, or infiltrations of information, it is necessary to configure all social media accounts or hire a cybersecurity team to protect all the information held on each platform

Fuente: GCF Global