14 DAY TRIAL // Celebrities are certainly dangerous, but not in the “attack you in a dark alley” kind of way. Instead, they’re dangerous from an information security standpoint.
McAfee has released this year’s list of most dangerous celebrities and it seems that last year’s winner Heidi Klum has been replaced by Emma Watson, the British actress famous for her role as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter series.
The top 10 is completed by Jessica Biel, Eva Mendes, Selena Gomez, Halle Berry, Megan Fox, Shakira, Salma Hayek and Sofia Vergara.
So what does the security firm mean exactly when it says that these celebrities are “dangerous” or “the riskiest”? The stars are dangerous because when we search for them on Google and other search engines, the chances are that we’ll be presented with all sorts of malicious websites.
Searching for “Emma Watson free downloads”, “Emma Watson [adult] pictures”, “Emma Watson fakes” and “Emma Watson busted” will most likely expose internauts to various online threats such as spyware, adware, spam, phishing and malware.
For instance, there’s a 12.6% chances that you'll stumble upon one of these malicious elements in case you’re searching for Emma Watson related content.
Statistically speaking, Latino women are riskier, a fact that is clearly seen in the list. Furthermore, there are no male celebs, which indicates that women are more dangerous than men.
Another trend observed this year is that supermodels are highly risky. Numbers 16, 17 and 20 - Elle Macpherson, Bar Refaeli, and Kate Upton - are all “dangerous.”
So what can we do to protect ourselves against these threats?
First of all, Internet users must beware of websites that ask them to download various applications before presenting them with the promised content.
Also, they must ensure that security solutions are up and running on all their Internet-enabled devices, including laptops, smartphones, tablets, and even Macs.
Finally, avoid searching for “free downloads,” since they’re the ones that usually bring the largest number of malicious elements.