Earlier this year, customers of a local bank received an email requiring them to update their bank records by clicking a link disguised as the bank’s website. Little did some of them know that their credit card information would be compromised.
The National Bureau of Investigation would later arrest a 22-year-old, who made online purchases using the customers’ credit card information and earned money selling the phished data to other parties.
This illustrates how the Internet has created a new ground for fraud, theft and many other crimes. And it shows the world needs to give bigger attention and take bolder action more than ever – starting with educating the youth.
As part of its efforts to raise awareness on Internet safety among kids and families, global cybersecurity player Trend Micro, Inc. is bringing back the “What’s Your Story? Art Caravan” to Greenfield District in Mandaluyong City on November 25, 2017.
First launched in 2013, the art caravan visits different schools to encourage students to create digital or traditional art aimed at promoting Internet safety, in line with Trend Micro’s pursuit of a world safe for exchanging digital information.
Trend Micro opens “What’s Your Story” to the public during the Greenfield District leg of the art caravan. For this year’s edition, the company asks participants to create art around the theme, “If you could change one thing about the Internet, what would it be?”
“The ‘What’s Your Story? Art Caravan’ aims to encourage the youth to share our vision of a world safe for exchanging digital information and, in turn, become advocates for cybersecurity through art,” Trend Micro director for technology marketing Myla V. Pilao said.
“The pervasiveness of the Internet leaves everyone vulnerable to phishing scams, cyber bullying, identity theft, sexual harassment and other crimes. In tackling the dangers that the Internet brings, educating the youth gives us a great start.”
New Generations 2015, a survey by Turner Broadcasting System Asia-Pacific, revealed that 93% of Filipinos aged four to 14 and living in Metro Manila use the Internet. Of the 500 respondents, 86% access social media.
“As the world becomes digital more than ever, we commit to helping build a generation of responsible Internet users, who understand the importance of cybersecurity and contribute to achieving it,” Pilao said.
“What’s Your Story?” is just one of the programs that Trend Micro implements to create awareness and advance discussions on cybersecurity at homes and businesses alike.
The art competition is open to three categories of entrants: primary, secondary and tertiary students. Participants will have to create and submit A4-sized artworks in portrait orientation using oil, pastel, charcoal, pencils, crayons, markers or watercolor.
Trend Micro will announce a winner for each category in every leg of the caravan. Winners will receive P20,000 each at the end of the contest on February 14, 2018.
When it launched “What’s Your Story?” in the Philippines four years ago, Trend Micro asked students to come up with creative videos showing how to maintain a good reputation online.
In her winning entry titled “The Story of My (Online) Life” under the school category, Marie Pellejo then forwarded four tips on protecting one’s reputation on social media. The entry encouraged to take care in putting private information online; associate only with people you know; consider protecting your profile by using good passwords; and think before you act.
“On the fourth year of our ‘What’s Your Story?’ art caravan, we encourage the youth to continue examining the good and bad sides of the Internet by identifying and pushing for meaningful changes one at a time,” Pilao said.
Trend Micro has stayed at the forefront of making the world safe for the exchange of digital information for the last 28 years.
Most recently, the company detected and tackled a ransomware attack that started with transport systems and media outlets in Ukraine and Russia. Called BadRabbit, the ransomware would later spread to Bulgaria, Germany, Turkey, Japan and other countries.
Bad Rabbit Ransomware spreads to other computers by dropping copies of itself in the network using its original name and executing the dropped copies by controlling the computer remotely. It is compared to the WannaCry and Petya attacks earlier this year.
