Session 2
Details session 2 and evaluates key implications for security practitioners.
Summary
Research Context and Scope
Dr Lindsay Shepherd of Abertay University presents usable-security research on how COVID-19 changed cyber risk. Her work spans eye-tracking of security warnings, gamification, cyber ranges via the Foresight project, and collaboration with Scottish policing researchers.
Pandemic-Driven Threat Surge
From late 2019, scams impersonating authorities such as the WHO rose alongside rapid remote-work adoption. Critical infrastructure including healthcare was targeted internationally, while high-volume “everyday” cybercrime flooded citizens already stressed by lockdown and routine disruption.
Mapping the Attack Timeline
Shepherd’s team reviewed news and blogs—too recent for journals—to chart worldwide attack evolution from China’s initial WHO alert through lockdowns. UK lockdown coincided with sharply rising scams and malware; literature cited roughly 600% attack growth in March 2020 and millions of daily COVID-themed phishing messages blocked by Google.
Forward-Looking Concerns
Hybrid working persists, so pandemic-era security challenges are not fully reversed. Shepherd argues future major disruptions will recur, requiring lessons from this period about human factors such as afternoon fatigue increasing phishing susceptibility.
