Multiple factors are influencing this trend. For starters, high-profile sporting events have become more digital in recent years. Sports teams, major league and global sporting associations, and entertainment venues have significant information, such as insights into athletic performance and each team's competitive advantages, as well as sensitive consumer information. Threat actors are attempting to capitalise on the global sports industry, which is predicted to reach $623.6 billion by 2027.
Additionally, large-scale professional sports environments involve various connected gadgets and interconnected networks. For example, when Microsoft assisted in providing cybersecurity support for critical infrastructure facilities during a major global sporting event, we performed over 634.6 million authentications while protecting over 100,000 endpoints, 144,000 identities, and 14.6 million email flows.
High-profile sporting events come quickly, so security teams must have clear visibility and control over their whole digital estates. This covers participants' personal devices, as well as the team or venue's Web and social media presence, registration and ticketing platforms, mass notification systems, electronic signage, and other features.
Continue reading to learn about the top cybersecurity threats to professional sports teams and event venues, as well as how you can assist safeguard against them.
Three major cyber-threats for sports venues
No two venues are the same, and security teams must consider a range of criteria, including the arena's physical location, event participants, and crowd size, to develop an appropriate cyber-risk profile. However, parallels can still be noticed amongst high-profile sporting events. Here are some frequent cyber-risks to consider when securing large events and venues.
Connected video boards and digital signage: Digital displays might be an underutilised entry point into a venue's network. When developing a proactive defence and planning for massive events, security teams should adhere to zero-trust concepts such as blocking superfluous ports and conducting periodic network scans. This allows teams to scan for rogue wireless access point upgrades and patch software as necessary. Furthermore, teams should prioritise applications that provide an encryption layer for all data.
Wi-Fi hotspots, mobile apps, and QR codes: Human error and individual guest behaviour might be among the most unpredictable threats for security teams to address. General cybersecurity education can be extremely beneficial in this area. Begin by encouraging event participants to update their apps and personal devices with the most recent software fixes. Similarly, guests should be cautioned not to use public Wi-Fi to access critical private data, and to exercise caution when responding with unauthorised links, files, and QR codes.
Stadium access and infrastructure equipment: Critical infrastructure is another popular target for online criminals. Security teams can enhance stadium access and infrastructure equipment protection by creating logical network segments between IT and operational technology (OT) systems. This helps to minimise cross-device access to data, reducing the potential impact of a cyberattack.
Cyber attacks to sporting events present a unique challenge. Because of the rapid speed of professional sports and large-scale events, detecting these threats might be challenging. However, by sharing information on the most recent attack vectors and cybersecurity best practices, we may help to create a more secure digital world for both sports fans and professionals.