Cyber Crime: Recently, a news has come out quoting NordVPN that the data of 600 million users is being sold for Rs 490. This data has been saved in the bot market at the rate of Rs 490 per person. The surprising thing is that the name of India is at the top of the chart of this data being sold. In such a situation, 2 questions definitely come to mind that can anyone buy data from bot market, and how can we keep our data safe? In today’s news, we are going to answer these questions.
What is bot market?
In the world of hackers, bot market has a different meaning. Bot market is an online market for hackers, which is used by hackers to sell hacked data. The data being sold may include personal information such as logins, cookies, digital fingerprints and screenshots.
Your data is not safe
According to Marijus Briedis, CTO of NordVPN, "A simple password is no longer worth it to criminals when they can buy login, cookies and digital fingerprint in one click for just Rs 490. Some things are even simpler. For example, a hacker can take control of a victim’s Steam account by changing the password. Steam accounts are sold for up to $6,000 per account. For a criminal, this can become an easy way to earn money."
What information can one buy from the bot market?
By buying the data being sold in the bot market one can get details like screenshots of the device of the users. Apart from this, there is also a malware which can also take selfie using the front camera of the phone. These bots also steal login credentials. According to NordVPN research, the bot market contained over 26.6 million stolen logins, including Google, Microsoft and Facebook login details. Cookies and digital fingerprints are also stolen to understand the behavior of the users. These stolen data can be used by cybercriminals to do many wrong things and even ask for money from your friends on social media platforms.
How to be safe from data hackers?
NordVPN advises its users to use anti-virus at all times. Similarly, it also recommends using password managers and file encryption tools to prevent hackers from stealing personal data. Apart from these precautions, you should never click on any link from an unknown source. Do not sideload apps and games downloaded from third-party platforms. Also, don’t connect your device to a public Wi-Fi network.
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