Internet Security Threats: The Rise of Financially Motivated Hackers

The Internet Security Threat report by Symantec highlights a significant rise in cyber attacks during the first half of 2005, focusing on identity theft, extortion, and fraud. The report notes an increase in spyware and bot networks, with phishing messages also on the rise. Threats are expanding beyond computers to mobile devices like phones and PDAs. Symantec predicts future attacks will embed in multimedia files, and advises maintaining high security levels.

What was a major focus of Internet attacks in the first half of 2005?

• Cloud storage breaches

• Social media hacking

• Identity theft and fraud

• Data encryption

What is a significant threat that has more than doubled according to the report?

• Password cracking

• Bot networks

• Firewall breaches

• Email spam

How did phishing messages change according to the report?

• They remained the same

• They decreased significantly

• They were eliminated completely

• They increased from 3 million to 5.7 million per day

Which devices are increasingly being targeted by worms?

• Gaming consoles

• Smart TVs

• Next generation phones and PDAs

• Desktop computers

What does Symantec predict about future attacks?

• They will decrease due to better security

• They will be embedded in audio and video images

• They will focus on hardware vulnerabilities

• They will target only large corporations