Hackers Leech 600 Billion A Year From Global Economy

There is big money in hacking, and it’s causing money to leak from the global economy at an astounding pace.

With the relative efficiency that comes with computing as means of commerce management, the unfortunate side effect is that there blind spots and attack vectors hackers can exploit in order to gain access to funds that would otherwise go towards enterprise.

Researchers at RiskIQ have published a report indicating that every minute, $1,388,888 is stolen by cybercriminals and that in the same amount of time, as many as 1,861 users are victimized by hackers. In total, that’s nearly $600 billion a year that goes into the pockets of illicit organizations or individuals.

There are ways you can make sure you don’t become a statistic. MetaCert built Cryptonite, an open source browser add-on for Chrome, Firefox, and Opera that protects you by blocking phishing sites. Due to the prevalence in scams revolving around cryptocurrency, Cryptonite also provides a visual cue with a black shield that turns green when you visit a verified web resource related to cryptocurrency. The shield also turns green for verified social media account posts, so you can avoid scammers on Twitter and the like.

Cryptonite is also the only way that you can participate in the MetaCert Protocol Beta Program, where you’ll get a special opportunity to earn a bonus on tokens:

Cryptonite is just one of the ways you can protect yourself when browsing the internet but there are also other things you can do. When was the last time you changed your password on your email, for instance? It doesn’t matter what your answer is, with the number of server breaches housing consumer data it’s probably time for you to change it again. You can make password management easy; if you’re not using it already, try 1Password, a password management tool that makes it easy to keep track of multiple accounts, and has some useful tools to help you store and generate passwords safely. This way you can have a hard to crack password on an account without having to worry about keeping track of it on a slip of paper, or relying on your memory.

Do you use 2 factor authentication(2FA)? If so, does it rely on a cell phone carrier’s SMS? I’m here to tell you that can be a big mistake. You should consider turning to a tokenized form of 2FA rather than relying on a cell carrier’s SMS system. If a hacker is able to port your phone’ SIM card by calling the carrier and impersonating you with data that is often mineable from public resources, any account relying on that SMS based 2FA can be breached. The personnel who work for cell phone carriers are trained to resolve conflicts and unfortunately this means that it’s only a matter of time until a weak link in the security chain allows someone to port your phone over. If you MUST use a phone’s SMS for 2FA, buy a disposable phone, and don’t give out the number.

As hackers persist to try and find security flaws and blind spots, MetaCert is busy putting up road blocks to protect consumers and communities and chances are pretty good we’re protecting you; today our Telegram bot protects at least 1,000,000 people in cryptocurrency groups and we expect that number to continue to grow. Check out how MetaCert protects you by joining our Telegram group and get involved with our beta program by downloading Cryptonite today.

MetaCert Protocol is the best in the world at one thing — URL Classification.

MetaCert Protocol is decentralizing cybersecurity for the Internet, by defining ownership and URL classification information about domain names, applications, bots, crypto wallet addresses, social media accounts and APIs. The Protocol’s registry can be used by ISPs, routers, Wi-Fi hotspots, crypto wallets and exchanges, mobile devices, browsers and apps, to help address cyber threats such as phishing, malware, brand protection, child safety and news credibility. Think of MetaCert Protocol as the modern version of the outdated browser padlock and whois database combined.

Find out more about the MetaCert Protocol, ask questions, and leave suggestions on both our White Paper and Technical Paper. You can also join our Telegram community to stay up to date on our blockchain project. Remember to install Cryptonite to protect yourself from phishing scams before it’s too late.