Because of the risk of hostile cyber activity, the FBI is recommending Olympic participants to leave their personal mobile phones at home and bring burner phones to the Beijing Winter Olympics this month.
Those at the games remain attentive and follow best practices in their network and digital environments, according to the FBI, even if they're unaware of "any specific cyber threat to the Olympics."
2022 Winter Olympics might suffer from cyber attacks
Chinese espionage and intellectual property theft are a growing concern among U.S. national security officials, and intelligence officials have publicly warned that China has built a sophisticated techno-surveillance state within its borders, backed by cameras, facial recognition, and other technology.
According to FBI Director Chris Wray, the FBI presently has over 2,000 counterintelligence investigations concerning alleged Chinese attempts to steal American technical information. The Biden administration will not send government personnel to the games even though US athletes will be able to compete. The Paralympic Games, which are also taking place in Beijing, follow the same principle.
Last year, Psaki told reporters that the White House wants to convey a "clear message" that China's human rights violations imply that "business as usual" cannot continue, according to CNN. Athletes competing in the Games, as well as visitors to China for athletic competitions, are at risk of their mobile devices being hacked.
Because of the necessity to identify and limit COVID-19 outbreaks inside the "bubble" where events are hosted, Chinese officials are asking all Olympic participants to download smartphone applications that will allow the government to monitor their activity, per Washington Times.
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FBI urges athletes at Beijing Olympics to leave personal devices
Because foreign viewers are not permitted to visit the Olympics, the FBI warned that the forthcoming Games might be vulnerable to cyber attacks because people would be increasingly reliant on social media and streaming services to watch them.
According to the FBI, cyberattacks could be launched against broadcasters and internet service providers to disrupt service during the Games. Phishing campaigns and social engineering could disrupt broadcasting networks, and cyber-attacks could also affect certain types of infrastructure, such as hotels and ticketing services.
The warning comes only days before the commencement of the Winter Games, which are being boycotted by numerous countries, including the United States, due to concerns over human rights, WBTW News13 reported.
According to the FBI, there is no specific cyber danger to the Olympics. Malicious cyber actors, on the other hand, might utilize a variety of methods to disrupt the festivities, according to the report.
"Distributed denial-of-service assaults, ransomware, malware, social engineering, data theft or leaks, phishing campaigns, misinformation efforts, and insider threats are all examples of these operations," according to the FBI.
According to the FBI, malware, email spoofing, phishing, and the use of phony websites and streaming services made it seem like official Olympic service providers were the most prominent cyber assault techniques employed during the past Olympics. Hotels, public transit providers, ticketing services, event security infrastructure, and other Olympic support operations might all be targeted by criminals.
Despite the fact that many cybersecurity safeguards are already in place, the FBI advises people and organizations to stay on top of their networks and digital surroundings and follow best practices. The Beijing Olympics will begin on February 4 and will conclude on February 20, as per WCCO Radio Minneapolis via MSN.
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