Page 52 - English Tehelka Issue 6 - March 31, 2018

social media

Social Media Menace: How it yourself these questions only when applications seem irresistible and the mental traits of his target.

we are easy prey for dishonest
you plan your defense accordingly.
The same rule applies to the so-
cial media platforms. So, think twice
A cracker collects information
intentions. Before the launch, the
violates our privacy and we about the ‘would-be’ victim first. You application asks to access the user’s before accepting invitations from
may compare this to a war strategy. profile, in most cases this is manda-
friends just because another friend
has referred it. Please do not feel
Before any attack, army generals sit tory, and once we give the nod our
are at the mercy of hackers down and listen to every minute carefully crafted privacy settings obligated to navigate through a web
detail about the enemy; the loca-
link given by a friend. Often your
are violated. In a research paper,
true friend does not know how he
experts Aaron Beach, Mike Gar-
tion, the strength, the possible back
up strength and other staff. The
process of collecting such infor- trell, and Richard Han have studied or she helps intruders to swoop on
the role of applications in violating
your machine. There are many good
While sharing simple pictures and information online with friends and followers we are mation is called reconnaissance or user-privacy and exposed how vul- websites where you could check the
nerable we were.
information gathering. Before any
veracity of any URL. Copy and paste
vulnerable to the hackers who are always on the prowl, discretely following every minute attack, the more information a Imagine a real-life scenario the URL and first take it there to test
online movement of their victims, writes sanjib sinha cracker gathers, greater is the where a cracker watches the activi- it and better watch it separately.
chance of success. ties of the target; he has been doing Good practices include a few more
Unfortunately, social media plat- it clandestinely for some months. things. Avoid opening up any at-
elcome to the world up once upon a time. It is custom- your social media account a large forms become, inadvertently, a hot- It appears that every day, the milk- tachment; your best friend could
that is put on public ary that while you were opening a amount of private data is exposed. bed of cyber-crime by exposing big man rings the doorbell at around have sent it, but he or she had sent it
display. No privacy new account in a bank through the When we post in the social data about the billions of users. six-thirty in the morning and the without knowing the proper source.
anymore. Please internet, it usually asked you a few media, we usually do not think the Usually, a user carefully sets the target opens the door and collects Never disclose private information
W come to our kitch- security questions. In such scenari- way a cracker thinks or chalks out privacy settings and feels safe; it is the packet of milk. After that ap- such as your nickname, names of
en, bedroom, and even toilet! Wel- os, if you forgot your password the the plans before in one fell swoop beyond perception what could hap- pears the newspaperman sharp at your pets and other such trivial but
come to the omnipresent world of automated form asks you a security he wipes out all your money. It is a pen when a friend posts a photo on seven and after half an hour, the significant information.
social media where we have smart- question that you had chosen ear- part of his strategic planning. With his or her wall and at the same time target takes his kid out to the school It is a pleasure to be present on
phones in our hands and let us take lier. It could have been your dog’s more data you post on social media, invites mutual friends to view that and from there he goes to his office. any social media platform with
a few ‘clicks’ wherever we are; it name, or the name of your college exposing yourself, you place your- photo. This type of privacy viola- This information is public. Anyone thousands of friends but never relax
would put the picture at once in the self at the crackers’ mercy. tion commonly occurs. Download- can gather it by watching the typical the grip that allows you to question
social media and wait, your friend, In social media, there are a few ing various interesting applications lifestyle of a disciplined family man. its true purpose.
sitting in the loo, gives a ‘thumbs up’ rules we have already set and we is quite common in social media. It Besides gathering the information,
immediately. The cycle of strange- While posting in usually do not break them. One is not our fault. Sometimes some the cracker has a clear mapping of letters@tehelka.com
contentment is complete now. social media, we of such rules says, when a friend-
Wait. There is something still to request comes from one of your
come and the real saga of sorrow is usually do not friends’ friends, it is rude to reject
about to start from here. think the way a that appeal. The irony is, you do not
Where have you taken the pic- know that person. It seems more
ture? Suppose, you have just come cracker thinks or ironical, because your friend also
out from your ATM withdrawing chalks out plans does not know that person prop-
money and the Bank’s name is vis- erly. Actually, your friend could not
ible in your background. Suppose, before he wipes reject the request just like you be-
I am a hacker with a bad inten - out all our money cause it had come from one of the
tion and I have been following you friends of his or her friends. The
through all your social media ac- in one fell swoop trail is endless and the vulnerabil-
counts for a long time. I have col- ity starts increasing with the tag of
lected loads of data about you but I anonymity it is carrying with it.
could not get the bank’s name until you had attended. What could be the next moves
now. My cycle of reconnaissance is Now, I, a hacker with bad inten- associated with that anonymous
complete now! tion (actually this type of hackers friend? You did not expect any bad
How? are called crackers), have just come intention while you were accepting
From one of your social media to know about it. Your challenge the request. The ability to create pic-
accounts, I have already collected a responses for an online bank tures in your mind did not warn you
few data that include — your dog’s account are now open and it really that how he would try to penetrate
name is Lucky; you had attended serves no useful purpose in your into your system. You are not sup-
Stephen’s College, etc. Now, think social media account. On the con- posed to know what kind of tools he
about the bank-form you had filled trary, during a hacker swoop on is going to use. You are about to ask

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