The esports fever is sweeping the globe! Numerous high-budget tournaments for well-known games are held all over the world, featuring games like Counter-Strike Global Offensive and League of Legends. But until hackers act, everything is all for fun. Find out why cybersecurity is crucial for esports.
The esports and online gaming industries have been expanding quickly recently. In fact, it is believed to be worth more than 100 billion globally. As a result, hackers and other cybercriminals have turned this expanding sector into a tempting target. Most video games are now distributed online via services like Steam, Battle.net, and EA Origin, where hundreds of millions of gamers store their personal data like name, birthdate, address, and credit card information. It goes without saying that these sites are frequently assaulted. Hackers are brazen enough to target massive e-sports conventions, competitions, and events, so the threat from cyberspace to the game business doesn’t end there. Even without the significant usage of public WiFi, such events are a delight for online criminals.
In this article, we’ll talk about the impending cyber threats that are aimed at the esports business and how you can stay safe.
What makes the gaming business a desirable target?
- Hackers are enamoured with the gaming business for a variety of reasons. We will concentrate on the four most crucial reasons below in order to keep this section brief and clear.
- the popularity of online shopping. Nowadays, we hardly ever purchase a game’s physical copy. Instead, we purchase our games through services like Steam, EA Origin, and others. We leave a digital imprint as a result. Cybercriminals make every effort to compromise such sites in order to steal gamers’ credit card details. Overall, making an internet transaction makes it much simpler to steal payment information.
- More people than ever like playing online games. We used to play most of our games offline in the last few decades, but things have drastically changed. Since we truly enjoy playing video games with our pals, internet games are currently in their golden era. We simply adore being connected, whether it is through MMORPGs or online co-op games. As a result, assaults on our systems, networks, and gaming clients are more likely.
- The plethora of online platforms: Due to the rising popularity and demand for online games, there are countless different digital platforms available, including online stores and gaming clients. A casual gamer can count between four and five of them. Consequently, it is simpler to discover a weak point or security flaw in at least one of those systems.
- Massive gaming events: Since esports and online games are popular, so are their events! Events like tournaments, conventions, launch parties, and similar ones draw tens of thousands of attendees. Almost usually, there will be public WiFi available at such gatherings that cybercriminals can use.
Increasing game security
You need expert assistance if you want to defend your business and yourself from cybercriminals who target the gaming industry. Every facet of the gaming experience, from the game’s distribution to the client’s upkeep, must be secure. There must be numerous layers of security measures in place, pen testing, assistance from cybersecurity specialists, and custom solutions.
Users must take the appropriate safeguards in addition to the protection offered by the companies. It can be very helpful to enable two-factor authentication, keep software updated, use a password manager, and get a VPN.