In this episode of the Security Swarm podcast, host Andy is joined by Romain Basset from Hornetsecurity to discuss the cybersecurity implications of the upcoming 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France. The conversation explores how the geopolitical landscape, with ongoing global tensions and conflicts, creates a high-profile stage that threat actors may target for hacktivism, financial gain, or destabilization. 

Throughout the episode, they highlight the increased risks leading up to the 2024 Games, noting that French infrastructure has already been targeted by various threat actor groups, including DDoS attacks. They discuss the blurring lines between cybercrime and geopolitical threats, with many threat actors now engaging in both financially and politically motivated attacks. 

Key takeaways: 

• The Olympics are a prime target for cyber-attacks due to the global attention and geopolitical tensions surrounding the event.
• Past Olympic games have seen a variety of cyber-attacks, including distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, malware, and false flag operations to mislead attribution. 
• Cyber-attacks targeting the Olympics can have far-reaching consequences, including international chaos, disinformation campaigns, and real-world impacts on businesses and infrastructure.  
• While the threat landscape is complex, the best defense is to focus on cybersecurity basics like user training, multi-factor authentication, and regular backups - rather than getting distracted by the latest "shiny object" threat.  

Timestamps: 

(01:15) - Why Cybersecurity is Important for the Olympics  

(02:25) - Geopolitical Tensions and Threat Actors  

(04:31) - Potential Cyber Attacks - Scams, Extortion, Disinformation  

(06:50) - The 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics Cyber Attack  

(12:48) - False Flags and Attribution Challenges  

(16:05) - Overlap Between Cybercrime and Geopolitical Destabilization  

(19:13) - Real-World Impacts of Geopolitical Cyber Tensions  

(23:08) - Cybersecurity Best Practices and Advice 

Episode Resources:

Read our blog about Russia’s notorious history of attacking the Olympics

Protect your business before it’s too late with 365 Total Protection

Train your users to spot phishing emails during the Olympics with Security Awareness Service