Fintech industry for kids faces cybersecurity risks: experts

LAHORE: The development of the FinTech industry for kids also marks the appearance of new threats. An increasing number of banks are providing specialized products and services tailored for children, including banking cards designed for kids as young as 12. Yet, with the introduction of banking cards for children, they also become susceptible to financially motivated threat actors and vulnerable to conventional scams.

Using social engineering techniques, cybercriminals might exploit children’s trust by posing as peers and requesting the sharing of card details or money transfers to their accounts.

Experts from Kaspersky, a global cybersecurity and digital privacy company, explore some of the key cybersecurity trends parents should be aware of, and provide tips on how to safeguard their children's online activities.

According to UN research, about 80 percent of young people claimed they interact with AI multiple times a day. With the development of AI, numerous little-known applications have emerged with seemingly harmless features. However, AI apps, specifically, chatbots can easily provide age-inappropriate content when prompted.

The latest online statistics depict that 91 percent of children aged 3-15 play games on any device. For some games, unmoderated voice and text chat are a large part of the experience. Cybercriminals can virtually build trust in the same way they would in person. Firstly, they gain the trust of young players by luring them with gifts. Once they have the confidence of a young gamer, they then obtain their personal information by suggesting that they click on a phishing link.

According to Kaspersky, the number of smart home threat cases with children being potential targets will increase. Despite the increasing number of cases of threats to smart home devices, manufacturers are not rushing to create cyber-immune tech that preemptively prevents potential exploits of vulnerabilities. This also means children can become tools for cybercriminals in an attack.

In Pakistan, different digital literacy organizations are also working on this important matter and are quite concerned about the latest threats to children in this digital era.

The Digital Rights Foundation (DRF) is conducting sessions on digital awareness among children. During the three months with the support of the deputy commissioner of Lahore, awareness sessions are conducted in the government primary and secondary schools of the Lahore district among more than 2000 students.

Chairperson DRF Nighat Dad said the project is ‘Hamara Internet, Mehfooz Internet’. In these sessions, children are trained that the internet is not a standalone thing, rather a part of our life, and there is no difference between the physical protection and virtual protection concepts. Both are the same things now, she added.

Furthermore, the internet is part of life and needs to be treated like treating children with protection in day-to-day routine life. The teachers are also trained to understand Children's Rights and if the children have made some mistakes, there should not be victim-blaming. Instead, create trust with the children so that they will approach the teachers if they have made mistakes in the online sphere.

As children mature, they develop greater self-awareness, encompassing understandings of their personal space, privacy, and sensitive data, both offline, and in their online activities. This is why parents now require the skill to discuss their offspring’s online experience and the importance of parenting digital apps for online safety while respecting personal space.

When an app is unavailable in your region, young users will look for alternatives, which is often a malicious copy. Even if they turn to official app stores like Google Play, they still run the risk of falling prey to cybercriminals.

"As we have seen, many of the trends that are playing out in society are also affecting children, making them potential targets for attackers. This includes both the development of and the popularity of AI and smart homes, as well as the expansion of the world of gaming and the FinTech industry. Therefore, it is crucial to teach children the basics of cybersecurity from an early age, how to avoid falling victim to cybercriminals, what cyberthreats can occur during online gaming, and how to properly protect their personal data. All this is now a must-have knowledge not only for adults but also for the youngest users,” comments Usman Qureshi, Country representative in Pakistan for Kaspersky.

Kaspersky experts are convinced that protecting children from cybersecurity threats in 2024 requires proactive measures from parents. By staying informed about the latest threats and actively monitoring their children’s online activities, parents can create a safer online environment for their kids.