The price to be paid for using social networks: how much are your data really worth?

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By Jack Ferson

Do you know what a full package is? Although a complete package to carry out tourist activities could seem because of its denomination, the truth is that it is a much more sensitive data set, and that can be sold at a very good price.

In hidden corners of the Internet, such as the Dark Web, many cybercounts sell these types of data packages, which usually include name and surname, postal address, bank cards and identification documents.

So, Cybercounts who buy a full will have essential data to supplant a person’s identitywhich could lead to problems related to privacy and even the theft of your bank account.

In short, it is one of the worst leaks to which a citizen can be exposed, since the attackers could even get the social security number, one of any person’s most sensitive data.

Interestingly, many of the attackers do not acquire this type of data through the black market on the Internet, but are responsible for collecting them on different platforms or social networks. And, in this sense, the human being is the weakest link in the chain.

Although your personal data would not have to keep an associated price, think very well what you share in networks, since these can be a gold mine for people with malicious interests.

Your data is priceless; What is done with them, yes

First of all, it should be noted that the price as such of your personal data, or publications on your social networks, has no price. Now, what can be done with this does have great value.

According to estimates from different specialized sources, such as the latest Trustwave analysis, personal data that corresponds to personal identification information -PII) starts from about $ 5.

To reach more specific ones, such as stolen bank credentials, the price to be paid would already reach $ 200, a very cheap cost considering that the result can be devastating for the economy of a user who is a victim.

For its part, another company specialized as Experian conducted a prices investigation to which the stolen data were sold in places such as Dark Web that, although 2017, perfectly illustrates the real value of said information.

So, The most important personal data is usually a passport or the complete credit cardsince the latter allow to spend beyond a limit generally, a more than juicy goal for cybercriminals.

In this same area, medical data is some of those that show the greatest value, since they can reach a whopping number of $ 1,000, even below the $ 2,000 of the sale price that can be seen in passports – the United States in the specific case of study.

How much your data is sold on social networks

When using any social network, such as Instagram, Facebook or Twitter – now X – you have to take into account, in the first place, that these companies sell their data to third parties for advertising and measurement purposes, something very common and hidden in the terms of the service.

Beyond the price that these third parties can pay for your personal data, cybercriminal groups know perfectly what the true value of knowing different data associated with your profile is.

For several years, I have published the exact prices of different personal data on the Dark Web. Thus, at general, the highest are always bank credentials, not only of traditional financial entities, but also cryptocurrency sites.

But it also analyzes what they cost hacked services such as different profiles in social networks. In this case, A Gmail account can cost $ 60, the most expensive if compared to others such as Facebook and Instagram ($ 25) or Twitter ($ 20).

Additionally, the study also shows how much followers cost on different social networks, which are usually groups of bots that artificially increase the audience of an account. In this case, to get followers on Instagram, Twitch or Pinterest, they are barely paid 2 dollars.

In conclusion, your personal data is really valuable and, somewhere, someone has already put a price. So take care of what you share and on what platforms.

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Tags: Theft data, data, cybersecurity

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