CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 21, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM (NYSE: IBM)
Security today issued new research highlighting that the travel
industry and its customers are increasingly the targets of
cyberattacks as criminals seek to monetize highly valuable travel
data. Compounding the problem, a new survey conducted by Morning
Consult on behalf of IBM Security1 reveals that
travelers are still blind to the risks they face on the road. The
survey found that only 40% of respondents believed it was likely
they would be targeted for cybercrime while traveling, yet 70% are
engaging in high-risk behaviors while on the road.
Attacks in the travel and transportation industry are becoming
more frequent, opening already unwary travelers to cybersecurity
threats during their journeys. According to the 2019 IBM X-Force
Threat Intelligence Index, the transportation industry has become a
priority target for cybercriminals as the second-most attacked
industry—up from tenth in 2017— attracting 13% of observed attacks.
Since January 2018, 566 million
records from the travel and transportation industry have been
leaked or compromised in publicly reported breaches.
"Traveling has always been when people are more vulnerable. A
few hundred years ago, the perpetrators were pirates or highwaymen.
Now those criminals are still out there, but they've changed their
methods to focus on digital attacks instead," said Caleb Barlow, Vice President of X-Force Threat
Intelligence at IBM Security. "People carry a goldmine of data when
traveling including passports, payment information and detailed
travel itineraries. When placed in the hands of a cybercriminal,
all of this information can be patched together into a complete
picture of the traveler's life to inform identity theft, initiate
spear phishing attacks, or be sold on the dark web."
Traveling a Dangerous Road
Traveling can make people
more vulnerable to security threats than they are at home. On the
road, people tend to be distracted and overwhelmed, often opting
for convenience over security. At home, they may have safeguards
like controlling physical access to devices and setting up
firewalls to prevent digital intrusions, but on the road, they
might be more exposed.
Morning Consult conducted an online survey on behalf of IBM
Security to understand exactly how much risk travelers expose
themselves to while away from home, and found most Americans engage
in high-risk behaviors while traveling. More than 70% of Americans
surveyed have connected to public Wi-Fi, charged a device using a
public USB station, or enabled auto-connect on their devices which
puts their information at risk.
Business travelers are even more likely to engage in risky
behaviors. Nearly half (45%) of business travelers carry a device
with valuable or sensitive information on it, yet business
travelers admitted much more frequently to risky behaviors such
as:
- Connecting to public Wi-Fi—42% of business travelers do this
every time or very often vs. 34% for personal travelers do this
every time or very often
- Charging a device using a public USB station—40% of business
travelers do this every time or very often vs. 28% of personal
travelers do this every time or very often
- Enabling auto-connect on their devices—39% of business
travelers do this every time or very often vs. 30% of personal
travelers do this every time or very often
Travelers are acutely aware of the risks to their financial
information with more than half of those surveyed saying that they
are extremely or very concerned that their credit card (53%) or
other sensitive digital information (52%) will get stolen when
traveling. That number drops significantly when they are not
traveling, with only 40% similarly concerned that financial
information will be stolen at home and 41% that their digital
information will be stolen at home.
Digital Guardrails for a Safer Trip
As the 2019 summer
travel seasons begins, it is important for travelers and travel and
transportation companies to understand the threats facing them and
take precautions to help protect their sensitive data.
Cybercriminals are drawn to the travel industry because of the
wealth of data it holds and the economic value it drives.
Travel is a profitable industry, with travelers spending
$1.1 trillion in 2018 and supporting
15.7 million jobs in the U.S., according to the US Travel
Association. This year, 43 million Americans will travel during the
Memorial Day weekend to kick off the summer season, giving
financially motivated hackers plenty of individual targets for
their attacks.
Some digital safety tips for travelers include:
- Monitor Loyalty Rewards: Your loyalty information and
rewards are as good as cash to cybercriminals. Monitor accounts for
unusual activity, use strong passwords, set up multifactor
authentication where possible.
- Choose Your Wi-Fi With Care: It's easy for
cybercriminals to host Wi-Fi networks in public places to collect
data such as credit card information and more. Even legitimate
networks hosted by establishments can be open to digital
eavesdropping. Avoid public networks if you can; and consider using
a VPN for additional security.
- Bring A Backup Battery: Free USB power charging stations
may come with a cost you can't see. Cybercriminals can modify USB
connections to download data from your phone or install malware
without your knowledge. Instead, bring your own battery bank to
recharge your phone when you're low or use traditional wall plugs
instead of USB ports.
- Turn Off Unneeded Connectivity: If you don't need it,
turn it off. This includes Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and auto-connecting to
networks.
- Shred Your Tickets: The little scraps of paper from your
tickets, boarding pass, luggage tag, or hotel folio may seem
useless and harmless after you complete your trip, but savvy
criminals can gather a lot of information about your loyalty
rewards program from them. Be sure to save them until you can
destroy them appropriately by shredding.
- Be Smart When Paying: Don't use your debit card at
stores or restaurants that may not have the security to protect
their point-of-sale systems. If you use an ATM, select one inside a
bank branch or inside an airport, where the chance of tampering or
skimmers on the ATM is reduced.
To learn more about travel and transportation security go to:
https://www.ibm.com/security/industry/travel-transportation
The full Morning Consult survey results are available here:
https://www.ibm.com/downloads/cas/ZP95XZ6O
About IBM Security
IBM Security offers one of the most
advanced and integrated portfolios of enterprise security products
and services. The portfolio, supported by world-renowned IBM
X-Force® research, enables organizations to effectively manage risk
and defend against emerging threats. IBM operates one of the
world's broadest security research, development and delivery
organizations, monitors 70 billion security events per day in
more than 130 countries, and has been granted more than 10,000
security patents worldwide. For more information, please check
www.ibm.com/security, follow @IBMSecurity on Twitter or visit
the IBM Security Intelligence blog.
1 Morning Consult conducted this online survey on
behalf of IBM Security between April 23-24,
2019, among a national sample of 2201 U.S. adults.
Media Contact:
Kelly Kane
IBM Security Media Relations
kkane@us.ibm.com
413-297-2668
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SOURCE IBM