The FIFA World Cup has become a hunting ground for cybercriminals with tens of fake ticket portals, merchandise stores, streaming sites and betting apps surfacing to scam football fans worldwide.
Cybersecurity firm Fortinet said it identified more than 13,000 FIFA-related web domains created since January, of which 8.8%, or about 1,150, were malicious. It also found more than 1,700 new impersonation accounts on social media, 90% on Facebook and Instagram.
Fraud exposure during the tournament lifecycle can easily reach millions of dollars, said Yogesh Jaygadkar, senior manager, threat research, at FortiGuard Labs, Fortinet’s threat intelligence and research arm. “Events like FIFA create the perfect fraud environment: massive global attention, emotional urgency, high ticket demand, travel pressure, merchandise buying, streaming demand, betting activity, and job-seeking around the event,” he said.
