Hackers are setting up to attacks which target social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook in a multi-billion-dollar "cyberwar" next year, security experts warn.Network security experts expect cybercriminals to launch a campaign to gather personal information from users of the popular websites.
Private data including age, sex, marital status and locale are available on the sites, and malicious users plan to search the networking websites collecting this data and picking targets for phishing scams.
Hackers will also focus on instant messenger users and web-based phone services to steal identities and commit other online felonies.
Graham Cluley, senior consultant at Sophos, said: "The huge popularity of sites such as MySpace means it is an increasingly attractive target for criminals, who are always looking for new ways to gather information."
"If the hackers know you have a particular interest, this can be used to target you in a phishing attack. They know what you're into and can exploit this to obtain more information from you such as credit card details," he addes. "People are putting far too much information online and into the hands of identity thieves. Young people in particular, need to be very careful as it may come back to haunt them."
