Online Sense is ICDL Arabia's philanthropic arm aimed at raising public awareness on Cyber Safety.

Enjoy your Free WiFi Hotspot, but with Caution!

The Dubai police recently warned people that cyber criminals can use public WiFi networks to steal people’s personal information, including bank account details, pictures, and passwords. While free WiFi networks can be dangerous, you will be surprised to know that a majority of the people in the UAE said they “wouldn’t think twice” before logging on to a public WiFi network, according to the 2017 Norton Wi-Fi Risk Report. Even more shockingly, 87% of these people agreed to potentially putting their personal information at risk while using public WiFi.

Is the Sarahah App Stealing your Contacts?

The app is in news again for all the wrong reasons; experts recently claimed that it is accessing contacts on users’ phones, without asking for consent. Sarahah is being used by many people in the UAE, as they believe it’s a good way to share candid feedback, but it’s important that users are aware of this security risk.

Faketoken Alert: Malware Steals Bank Details from Android Apps

A new variant of the mobile banking Trojan Faketoken is stealing sensitive account related information from common Android apps used for travel and banking. The Kaspersky Lab uncovered this deceiving Trojan, which is a threat to anyone storing credit information for in-app purchases. There have been reports of the virus attacking and infecting popular apps such as Android Pay, and other ones used for travel and hotel booking, and making traffic fine payments. The virus can manipulate around 2,000 apps.

Is your Family being Spied on as your Child Plays Games Online?

A recent lawsuit in USA claims that Viacom and Disney are collecting data such as location, browsing history through their online game for children, for advertising and other commercial purposes. The apps in question are embedded with trackers which can access geographical information, browsing history, and third party information, this data is then sold on. Children in the UAE play most of these games unaware of their possible risks.

Mariam Game Ban: What are the Risks of Playing Games Online?

The mobile game Mariam, developed in the Saudi Arabia last month became controversial when the Sharjah police recently cautioned people against playing it. Experts believe that the game seeks players’ personal information that can be used for identity theft or other unlawful purposes. This issue sheds light on the trend of games with questionable content, which can harm players in various ways.