This story is from July 19, 2016

Remember real-world risks, cyber experts warn 'Pokemon Go' fans

Resembling a scene from the movie 'Dhoom', two youths were seen zigzagging on their bike on the busy Fergusson College Road on Monday afternoon.
Remember real-world risks, cyber experts warn 'Pokemon Go' fans
(Representative image)
Pune: Resembling a scene from the movie 'Dhoom', two youths were seen zigzagging on their bike on the busy Fergusson College Road on Monday afternoon. The only difference being, they were not out to nab a robber, but to catch that elusive character from the game 'Pokemon Go'.
The game, which uses augmented reality and lets users play on their devices with cartoon characters in real locations, has grown exponentially in popularity since its launch on July 6 and is pegged to surpass Twitter soon.

For Jasin S (21), the game has not just brought back his childhood memories, but also helped him make new friends. However, what about the dangers the game poses on city roads. Ask him and comes the prompt reply. "Many of my friends have started playing and nothing bad has happened to them. People who are searching around for Pokemons on their two-wheelers are driving slow and using their friends' help," he said.
However, cyber experts believe that the game makes its users vulnerable to cyber attacks. "People are searching for the app or the installable file on the internet and downloading it directly as they are eager to be a part of the global craze. But since it not coming from a trusted and verified source, the user is at a high risk from being infected by malware which could be hiding in the guise of a game file," said Niranjan Reddy, cyber security expert.
"It has been seen that fake Pokémon Go app from Google Play store infects phones with screen locker. To tackle this, one can remove the battery, restart the phone and uninstall the malicious file," he added.
Even commissioner of police Rashmi Shukla has stressed on the dangers that such players pose on the roads as well as virtual world. "Children are not aware of all the dangers and criminals may take advantage of these roving children as they can be easily traced," she warned.

Against the backdrop of the game's rising popularity, Rotary District 3131 organized an online security workshop on Saturday where experts, lawyers talked about the risks that children are exposed to while playing the game.
Devashish Pramanik, chief executive officer of cloud security firm Clould Code software, said, "Users while installing the game do not read the terms and conditions and what access it is asking for. It has been seen in the past also how adware or malware use the guise of popular games by cyber criminals to hack into devices."
"There may be the individual's work emails or other data stored in the cellphone which trojans or hackers can gain access to and use the same for nefarious purposes," he said.
Kaspersky Lab has also warned eager gamers that they have detected a malware - HEUR:Trojan-Spy.AndroidOS.Sandr.a. - in malicious versions of the app. "One needs to be aware of what he is sharing with the makers of the app and the case is no different with Pokemon Go. One of the default login options the game offers is to use your Google account credentials. If you are a user of iOS, you may notice that the app asks for full access to your Google account," Kaspersky Lab experts said.
While users end up giving complete access to the gaming firm, there are reports that they also end up forfeiting their rights to sue the company for any mishap. But this doesn't seem to be of concern for the thousands of users who are refusing to be left behind in the 'Poke-race'.
Seeing the craze, many brands have been quick to realize they can use it to lure more customers. Many event management firms too have joined the bandwagon to lure crowds to their events. But all said and done, the users of the game should not throw caution to the wind and exercise caution not just for their safety but also of others, experts said.
Gamer Vishal Gondal's fitness firm Goqii saw the opportunity and was quick to tap in to encourage people to move around towards better fitness. Their recent event around Pokemon Go in the metro cities attracted almost 800 people, with 470 turning up just in Mumbai, making the event a hit. "We focus on gamification of health and since the game has taken over every social media and real conversation, the good point is that this proves to be a great motivation for people to exercise through its engagement gratification."
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