CONCEPT PAPER

CAÑA, GENESIS KATE L. SCORE:

12 STEM A PLATINUM DATE: MARCH 9, 2023

PREVENTION FROM EXPERIENCING SOCIAL MEDIA THREATS

“MAKE THE SOCIAL MEDIA A BETTER SPACE”

MISSION

This session seeks to educate people of the threatening events on social media, spread awareness,

and provide a quality basis for proposing initiatives in social media safety. Hence, the program

will help with social media threat prevention because it is essential to understand internet safety

rules which protect people from threats that may harm your data and devices.

VISION

After conducting this seminar, the organizer aims to make a difference in peoples’ lives and

making social media a safer place. This conference will have an influence on people's life since it

will help them by providing them with information about cyber threats.
 INTRODUCTION

Social Media has been very useful in the lives of its users. They get to interact and connect to

peers easily with just one tap, see each other’s faces on screen, communicate through online

messaging, discover new trends, get news updates, and many more. However, benefits are

always affiliated with disadvantages. These disadvantages are going to be the focus of this, one

of which is the Social Media Threat.

Traditional cyber risks or assaults have often targeted information and communication

infrastructure, resulting in financial damage. Normally, launching these assaults takes great

competence. Governments throughout the world are well aware of these concerns and have

implemented several measures to address them. The fast expansion of social media has given rise

to new forms of hazards that have spread from the cyber realm to the actual world. These

dangers have a significant impact on the psychological, social, and cultural dynamics of

susceptible social media users. Furthermore, it is becoming increasingly simple for even the most

inexperienced user to exploit social media for malevolent objectives. Businesses and

governments are struggling to detect, identify, forecast, and prevent hostile social media

exploitation.

Illegal data access is a rising issue, particularly for sensitive information. Individuals

unintentionally divulge private information, confidential business data, medical information, and

travel reservations. Disclosure of this information can result in monetary loss, identity theft, and

property loss. Social media exploits, such as phishing and malware-embedded games, can result

in account takeover, material misuse, and elevated access into accounts. users' personal lives.
Leaked personal information is also used to build targeted spear phishing emails, which may

induce a person to accidentally download malware or give up login credentials. Compromised

personal accounts can be used to communicate friends, relatives, and coworkers, further

spreading the harm. Knowing the hazards connected with your social media presence is critical

to lowering your total exposure.

There are four key real-life or everyday problems, issues, and concerns about’ experiences:

First, Attempts at Phishing with Forged Links. Phishing is when someone sends a message to a

victim purporting to be a respectable firm or contact in order to obtain personal information such

as passwords or credit card data. Second, Bullying and Abuse on the Internet. Anonymity thrives

on the internet, and bad behavior thrives there as well — especially on social media, where there

are no real rules or police. For example, celebrity accounts can be free-for-all for a barrage of

derogatory messages. In recent years, cyberbullying has become a common part of social media

usage, with numerous organizations and networks actively combating this sort of abuse. Third,

Theft of One’s Identity. Every year, millions of people are victims of identity theft. A large part

of this is due to a lack of awareness, growing trust in social media, and a lack of data standards

for data acquired on social media. People give out vast amounts of personal information –

frequently without even realizing it – as a result of the rise of social advertising. Fourth and last,

Fake apps with malware and legitimate apps that sells your information. Quizzes and social

media apps are especially deceptive. They will entice you with a compelling title. In 2015, a

Facebook quiz called Most Used Words came bundled with terms and conditions that gave the

developers permission to sell their data to third parties, as well as giving them data like your

name, pictures, friends, and entire Facebook history – as well as your IP address and device (“11

social media threats,” 2021).

from the advancement of internet technology and widespread use of social networking.

Cyberians, or cyberspace users, are attracted to the cyberspace from time to time because of the

different opportunities/activities available in it (Oluga, et al., 2014). However, with the

development of newer web apps, the risk of losing data is also increasing for some plug-ins

allows malware to enter the system. According to Prasad and Rohokale (2019), the biggest threat

entities are the Internet and the Internet of Things (IoT). The former is a system design that

allows different computer networks worldwide to connect, improve communications, and

business, while the latter refers to “the objects that are equipped with sensors, software, and other

technologies that allow them to connect and exchange data” (“What is IoT?,”

2021).Governments, governments and residents, as well as governmental agencies and

corporations, are increasingly using social media to communicate. This is due to social medias

distinct traits of openness, involvement, and sharing (Khan, et al., 2014). But the rise of

technology-based devices and Internet capabilities creates an intrinsic need to police computer

assisted crimes, though there is a limited knowledge on the prevalence of cybercrime and the

research of reasons behind these crimes (DeTardo-Bora & Bora, 2016).

Sharing too much personal information publicly is the most common source of social media

risks. According to a CEO, Stu Sjouwerman, despite the fact that social media platforms have

become present anywhere, many users are unaware of the risks connected with utilizing them

(“KnowBe4 Fights Social Media Phishing,” 2022). Attacks on social media accounts have

climbed by 43%, with social media phishing attacks increasing by an incredible 75%. Users are

frequently deceived by social media-related scams because they believe they can trust messages
from their “confirmed” contacts without realizing their personal information has been stolen and

they are being routed to a landing page that appears to be legitimate but is not.

In addition, Risk is defined as the combined effect of vulnerabilities, threats, and the possible

consequence of cyber-attacks in the context of cyber security. Vulnerability refers to the cyber

security system’s potential weaknesses. Threat refers to the probability of a cyber-attack

exploiting system vulnerabilities. Therefore, as stated by Kumar and Somani (2018), everybody

should have a certain level of Internet usage culture for them to be aware of illegal usages,

threats, and protection. It means using Internet applications efficiently and not erroneously (as

cited in Zeebaree, et al., 2020).

In our time today, there are causes that can have both positive and negative effects on each of

us, such as social media. It has had a positive impact on us in a variety of ways, one of which is

the facilitated communication of everyone around the world. Despite the advantages, social

media also has disadvantages including the challenges faced by people, particularly

cyberbullying. An attacker's strategies vary depending on the social media network targeted.

Because Facebook permits users to keep their photographs and comments private, an attacker

may frequently friend a targeted user's friends or submit a friend request straight to a targeted

user to gain access to their postings. If an attacker is able to connect to numerous of the targeted

user's friends, the targeted user is more likely to accept the friend request depending on the

number of linked friends. Gathering information to steal data isn't the only purpose to use social

media for reconnaissance. Social networking information might be used to gain passwords or

impersonate corporate users. Many online accounts enable users to change their passwords by

answering a security question. Based on the private information disclosed by a targeted user, an
attacker may predict the answer to these security questions with enough information from social

media posts.

The majority of social media dangers arise from employees openly sharing too much

personal and corporate information. Because they are personal accounts, corporations cannot

prevent users from having a social media presence. They may, however, educate users on the

best methods to safeguard their data and credentials. Education is critical to preventing social

media dangers. People have the ability to educate themselves. Therefore, firms must provide

training programs for all employees in order to recognize and avoid social engineering and

phishing. The first step is to educate consumers about the risks of releasing too much information

to the public online. Even private social media accounts might be exploited in an attack if the

attacker has access to private feeds. Several firms provide mobile devices with the option to

install social networking apps. These businesses should have an acceptable usage policy in place

that governs what users may publish using corporate equipment. It is also vital to secure these

devices from viruses in order to avoid having corporate social media accounts compromised. If

an employee physically loses or steals their device, remote wiping software should be

implemented.
 REFERENCES:

DeTardo-Bora, K., & Bora, D. (2016). Chapter 8 – cybercrimes: An overview of

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Khan, G. F., Swar, B., & Lee, S. K. (2014). Social media risks and benefits: A public

sector perspective. Social Science Computer Review, 32(5), 606-627. doi:

https://doi.org/10.1177/0894439314524701

Oluga, S. O., Ahmad, A. B. H., Alnagrat, A. J. A., Oluwatosin, H. S., Sawad, M. O.

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Oracle. (2021). What is IoT? Retrieved from https://www.oracle.com/internet-of-

things/what-is-iot/

Prasad, R., & Rohokale, V. (2019). Cyber threats and attack overview. Retrieved from

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