The FBI has urged athletes and visitors to the 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games in Beijing use temporary phones instead of their main one for fear of cyber-attacks.

The warning comes amid growing concerns of that threat actors may target the event or people attending.

According to the FBI, these include attempts to install malware on devices, largely to track their owners or steal data. Additional threats come from email spoofing, phishing and fake websites and streaming services designed to look like official Olympic service providers.

“The FBI urges all athletes to keep their personal cell phones at home and use a temporary phone while at the Games,” the US law enforcement body wrote.

“The download and use of applications, including those required to participate or stay in country, could increase the opportunity for cyber actors to steal personal information or install tracking tools, malicious code, or malware.

“Large, high-profile events provide an opportunity for criminal and nation-state cyber actors to make money, sow confusion, increase their notoriety, discredit adversaries, and advance ideological goals,” the FBI added.

With the coronavirus pandemic still affecting many countries, China will not allow foreign spectators to attend either the Winter Olympics or Paralympics. Instead, spectators will need to use remote streaming services and social media to watch events.

“Adversaries could use social engineering and phishing campaigns leading up to and during the event to implant malware to disrupt networks broadcasting the event,” the FBI added.

However, it did not say that there is any specific threat for attendees to the 2022 Winter Olympics to be aware of but encouraged vigilance against cyber-attacks.

The threats, “when successful, can block or disrupt the live broadcast of the event, steal or leak sensitive data, or impact public or private digital infrastructure supporting the Olympics”.

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The 2022 Winter Olympics come at a time of growing political tension. With cyber-attacks forming a key tool in nation states’ modern arsenals, and the Olympics being tied up with national prestige, they provide a tempting target for cyber-attacks and surveillance.

Furthermore, large groups of people living in unfamiliar territory and focused on other things provide ample opportunities for threat actors.

In one case at the Tokyo Olympics last year, hackers targeted one national sporting team. They planted a device and connected it to the team’s network. Once in, they attempted to access and exfiltrate data.

The attack, however, was spotted and stopped before it could do any damage.

However, according to the FBI, this was just one of 450 million attempted cyber-attacks on the games.

In addition, the last Winter Olympics was hit by a cyber-attack. This saw officials take down the game’s main website for 12 hours to limit the hacker’s access and prevent damage.

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