IN THE NEWS: Companies Better Start Investing in Cyber Security

When I was taking some courses within a graduate program for organizational psychology a few years ago, cybersecurity was constantly pointed out as one of the most vital departments for a company. Cybersecurity is something that is vitally important to making sure organizations retain their data and that it isn’t leaked to the highest bidder. Yet so many companies put very little emphasis on cybersecurity and the result ends up the hackers being able to have a field day at their expense. And it will become more costly as time goes on.

What led to me doing a post on this topic was an article I read this week on PC Gamer regarding the New South Wales Department of Education being hacked. With the world now being online and vital information being stored on servers and computer devices, we must understand that data is more vulnerable than ever before. I’ve never been a supporter of everything being archived digitally and able to be accessed online. I remembered when records and important files were kept in vanilla folders, but we are beyond those days. Everything is linked to computers, which have both positive and negative consequences.

The success and booming business of gaming has been one of the key reasons that gaming organizations have been on the radar of hackers. Multiple companies are bringing in billions of dollars a year, which has been specifically tied to the success of online gaming. This was noted in an online article by KELA, a research company that investigates and reports on cybercrimes and the Involvement of the Dark Web. The data that is stolen through cyberattacks are often sold through platforms such as the Dark Web. Earlier this year, data from CD Projekt Red reportedly sold for several million dollars on that platform.

I’ve noticed with the bigger cyber attacks against Electronic Arts and CD Projekt Red this year, as well as Ubisoft last fall, that all three are polarizing gaming publishers that make a lot of money. EA’s microtransactions through its “Ultimate Team” modes in Madden NFL and FIFA games have long been scrutinized by the gaming community. CD Projekt Red, once a beloved company due to The Witcher series, suddenly became infamous due to its terrible handling of Cyberpunk 2077’s launch. Ubisoft has been in gaming news due to the questionable workplace environment of its employees. In these cases, it appears they were possibly the targets of hacktivists—hackers whose actions are the result of some sense of justice. In video game terms, think of the Watch Dogs series. Oddly enough, Ubisoft publishes the Watch Dogs games.

So what does this all have to do with us as gamers? For starters, it is good to understand that the executives are not the only ones affected by cyberattacks. The developers and other workers within the gaming companies are also impacted. The attacks can also lead to the leaking of the personal data of these workers. Not only that, for you as a gamer, this can also include your information. Your address, credit card information, and other data that you’ve given to a gaming company can all be at risk as well. These cyberattacks are something for the entire gaming community to pay attention to, especially in this era of online gaming.

Thanks for taking the time to read today’s post. I just wanted to bring some attention to this topic. It is one that every gamer should consider. Gaming companies need to place more of a priority on beefing up their cybersecurity divisions. This is not just about doing their due diligence for the people who work within their organizations, but also to their consumers as well. Protecting them should be something worth investing in. Otherwise, we’ll just continue to read about cyberattacks that lead to million-dollar sales on the Dark Web with people’s information being compromised. That will eventually lead to a loss of confidence in those companies. What do you all think?

-TVGA
admin@videogamersadvocate.com

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