We all know that there are differences between men and women and we have all heard stereotypes such as "women do not do well" and "men do not talk about their feelings." But what about the digital world? Is gender playing a safe Internet browsing? Have online criminals already adjusted their tactics based on gender preferences? Investigations of international organizations, specialized scientists, but also of Kaspersky Lab, highlight the security risks that men and women face on the Internet [1].
According to the United Nations database and Eurostat [2], there are no significant differences between men and women regarding Internet use. In 2003, 19% of men in Greece used the Internet, with the corresponding figure for women reaching 13%. Comparatively, the situation has not changed much over time, with 64% of Greek men and 56% of Greek women "surfing" online in 2013.
Differences, however, exist in the way the two sexes use the Internet. These differences are particularly evident when talking about electronic games, videos and music, where men are more active than women. On the other hand, women using social networking sites are more than men [3].
«Έρευνες στο χώρο της κυβερνοψυχολογίας δείχνουν διαφορές μεταξύ των φύλων στη χρήση του Διαδικτύου, αλλά και στον τρόπο με τον οποίο αντιλαμβάνονται τους κινδύνους στο Διαδίκτυο. Οι γυναίκες χρησιμοποιούν περισσότερο μέσα κοινωνικής δικτύωσης, όπως το Facebook και το Twitter, για κοινωνική αλληλεπίδραση, ενώ οι άντρες εστιάζονται περισσότερο σε διαδικτυακά παιχνίδια, ηλεκτρονικές αγορές, αναζήτηση πληροφοριών και κοινωνικής supportς. Αν και κάθε on-line environment presents its own risks, men appear to be more vulnerable online because they appear to take – as in the real world – more risks than women, underestimating the likelihood of 'falling' victim, as well as the severity of the consequences," he explains Kyriaki G. Iota, MSc., PhD candidate at the University of Thessaly.
Overall, we can say that both genders are active on social media. Humans are social beings and seek contact with others, both in real life and online. However, women are more active on these sites. For them, communication with others is more important than opportunities for direct competition. Social networking sites perfectly satisfy this need [3].
Recent Kaspersky Lab survey of users across Europe [4], confirms that there are gender differences in the consequences of being “infected” by malware. At a rate of 17%, men admitted that they have suffered financial losses due to malware, while the corresponding percentage for women reaches 14%.
In addition, 16% of men said that unwanted software was installed on their computer when downloading music, software, videos, and more. Similar situations have been experienced by 11% of women. At the same time, 19% of men believe that online money theft is a rare phenomenon and that it is unlikely to cope with it. On the contrary, once 13% of women have agreed to this claim.
«Τόσο οι άνδρες, όσο και οι γυναίκες, πρέπει να καταλαβαίνουν τι κάνουν στο Διαδίκτυο και τι πρέπει να προσέχουν για την digital security τους», δήλωσε ο Dragan Martinovic, Managing Director για την περιοχή της Νοτιοανατολικής Ευρώπης στην Kaspersky Lab. «Εφόσον οι γυναίκες χρησιμοποιούν τα social media περισσότερο, θα πρέπει, για παράδειγμα, να δώσουν μεγαλύτερη προσοχή στις επιθέσεις phishing με στόχο τους χρήστες του Facebook. Οι άνδρες που επισκέπτονται συχνά sites με παιχνίδια, μουσική ή βίντεο θα πρέπει να γνωρίζουν τους κινδύνους των drive-by downloads", he added.
According to analyzes by Kaspersky Lab last year, 7 from 20's most widespread "Internet parasites" threatened users through drive-by-download attacks [5]. Drive-by-downloads are now the biggest threat to users, as their devices can be "infected" simply by visiting a broken website.
About phishing on social media, Kaspersky Lab's analysis [6] shows that during the first quarter of 2014, almost every 11η Phishing attempt that the company detected was aimed at stamping login information on Facebook accounts.
More information and ways to protect users' personal information are included in Kaspersky Lab's "Social Network Fraud" survey, which is available at Securelist.com.
[1] www.kaspersky.com/cyberpsychology
[3] http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/cyber.2012.0033 / Richard Joiner, Jeff Gavin, Mark Brosnan, John Cromby, Helen Gregory, Jane Guiller, Pam Maras, and Amy Moon. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking. July 2012, 15 (7): 370-372. two: 10.1089 / cyber.2012.0033
[4] The survey was conducted to 2014 by B2B International for Kaspersky Lab. In total, 11.135 users from 23 countries, 2.821 from which they were in Europe participated.
[6] http://www.kaspersky.com/about/news/virus/2014/Facebook-users-most-likely-targets-of-account-theft
