Kaspersky has warned that fake Telegram Premium offers have been spreading globally, targeting users with phishing scams and malware disguised as alternative app versions.

These attacks aim to steal account credentials or compromise devices. The scams capitalise on Telegram Premium’s popularity and gifting feature, making it crucial for users to remain vigilant.

Telegram Premium is a subscription that offers exclusive features, such as faster download speeds, voice-to-text conversion, premium stickers, an ad-free experience, and more. Users can gift a subscription, and scammers capitalise on this gifting feature and the Telegram Premium topic in general.

One of the tricks begins when a user receives a message that appears to come from someone in their contact list, whose account may have been hacked. The message claims: “You’ve been sent a gift — a Telegram Premium subscription”.

Below, there’s a link that looks legitimate but actually redirects the user to a phishing page, prompting them to log in to Telegram. If victims scan the code or enter their credentials, their account is immediately compromised, giving scammers access to their login details, password, and potentially their authentication code.

There are other tricks referencing the Telegram Premium theme, and not all of them necessarily start with messages on Telegram. Attackers may also use other methods to send phishing links, for example, email.

For instance, perpetrators host fake “giveaways” for Telegram Premium subscriptions. Victims are lured into participating, and in a series of steps, they are directed to a phishing site where they are prompted to enter their Telegram account credentials, ultimately resulting in their account being compromised.

Another machination involves cybercriminals sending victims an invitation to download a ZIP archive that claims to contain a version of the messenger service with a “Premium” subscription. The download link redirects users to a phishing page where they are once again asked to log in to Telegram.

Yet another fraud involves distributing malicious software disguised as an alternative version of the Telegram app with a “built-in” Premium subscription. Scammers send victims links to download APK files claiming they are modified versions of the app, but they turn out to be malware.

“Phishing schemes capitalising on the Telegram Premium topic has been observed in several languages, suggesting that the perpetrators operate globally. Even if these scams haven’t yet reached a specific region, there is a probability they could eventually make their way there.

Therefore, it’s always important to remain cautious and skeptical of offers that seem too good to be true. Additionally, make sure your Telegram security and privacy settings are up to date, and your device has a robust security solution,” advises Olga Svistunova, security expert at Kaspersky.

National Identity Management Commission of Nigeria (NIMC) has said that it is looking at ways of streamlining and expanding the rollout of digital ID in Nigeria and one of the options on the table is adding iris biometrics to its digital ID enrollment.

Iris biometrics is a biometric authentication technology that uses the unique patterns of the iris to identify a person

The hint was dropped recently by Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director general and chief executive officer, NIMC, during a Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) Journalism Fellowship training which took place in Abuja.

Speaking through a representative, the NIMC boss said this idea is among a litany of innovations which they are planning to introduce to the digital ID system in order to make it more inclusive, The Sun reports.

At the moment, biometric enrollment for the National Identification Number (NIN) in Nigeria involves face and fingerprints.

Adding the iris modality, according to the official, will make it possible for citizens with disabilities to be equally issued the important credential which is necessary to access a wide range of services in the country.

“We are exploring the use of iris recognition technology to cater to the specific needs of individuals with disabilities,” the representative was quoted as saying. Uganda is one other African country which has announced the addition of iris biometrics to its new generation biometric national ID card.

The NIMC CEO said despite the challenges the ID authority faces, its commitment to build an inclusive ID system and expand coverage remain unwavering.

She emphasized the important of the NIN as an essential tool in getting access to several services.

In order to streamline access to services, Odusote said they have been working tirelessly with their partners to enhance interoperability among government agencies to facilitate identity verification.

This, she says, will save Nigerians the stress of having to register many times with government agencies to obtain services.

The innovations envisaged by the NIMC are part of a broader reforms plan which aims to give the ID authority a new legislative framework for more efficient identity management.

It also comes at a time when the World Bank has extended its support for the country’s digital ID program by another two years, with a target to issue 180 million digital IDs by the close of the extension.

The Nigeria ID4D has pledged in the past to create the enabling environment to the issuance of NINs to persons living with disabilities.

A recent investigative report however suggests that many aged and physically challenged citizens in Nigeria go through tough times seeking the NIN.

Some have reportedly had their SIM cards blocked while others have been locked out of their bank accounts for their inability to register for a digital ID.

According to the recent Kaspersky IT Security Economics report, the majority of companies surveyed globally find the loss of productivity, securing complex tech environments, and enabling data protection to be the most concerning business issues, driven by growing IT security needs and requirements.

The Kaspersky IT Security Economics report is released every year to analyse the changes in budgets, breaches and business challenges affecting IT Security decision makers.

This report is compiled from interviews with IT and IT security professionals from organisations of different sizes and industries. The survey was carried out in 27 countries across Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, Latin America, North America, the Middle East, Turkiye and the Africa (META) region, including in Egypt, KSA, Pakistan, South Africa, Turkiye, UAE.

According to the report, downtime and lost productivity are the most concerning business problems caused by ineffective IT security, an opinion expressed by 38% of companies globally and 34% in the META region. They encounter this problem mainly because of the long-time taken to detect and remediate threats.

Data protection is another important concern that was expressed by 33% of companies globally and 34% in the META region.

Respondents were worried about this because they regularly encountered the physical loss of devices by employees and experienced leakage of data from corporate systems caused by both external and internal reasons.

Securing complex technology environments and ensuring data connectivity were also on the list of key concerns, according to 33% of respondents globally and 26% in the META region.

Among the main IT issues that cause this challenge, respondents pointed to the rising number of incidents involving non-computing connected devices and incorrect operations of cybersecurity solutions that leave systems exposed.

Additionally, difficulties in managing security across different computing platforms play a crucial role in their inability to build a reliable all-encompassing cybersecurity system.

“It is crucial for organisations to safeguard every aspect of their operations from potential breaches. Attackers no longer solely rely on zero-day exploits, as a simple click on a malicious link or a vulnerability in a contractor’s infrastructure can lead to devastating consequences.

“This underscores the idea that information security should be based on a comprehensive and systematic approach, rather than being limited to the implementation of individual point-specific measures,” comments Alexey Vovk, Information Security Director at Kaspersky.