The Paris 2024 Olympics and the fear of hackers.

Amidst the development of digital technology and complex international geopolitical developments, experts predict that the Paris 2024 Olympics will be the most vulnerable to cyberattacks ever.

The countdown clock shows 100 days remaining until the Paris 2024 Olympics on April 13. Photo: REUTERS

According to the Paris 2024 Olympic Organizing Committee, while the first cyberattacks occurred at the Montreal 1976 Olympics in Canada, and there were 450 million attacks by the Tokyo 2021 Olympics, the number of attacks in Paris 2024 is projected to reach 4 billion...

The figures released by the committee serve as a serious security alert for the world's biggest sporting event, posing unprecedented challenges for French cybersecurity agencies. Technology, now present in every aspect of social life, makes hacker attacks more diverse and sophisticated. Cybersecurity expert Baptiste Robert suggests that the primary targets could be critical French infrastructure such as electricity distribution networks, broadcasting, or hospitals. Hackers could also infiltrate the systems controlling the competitions, falsifying athlete results and disrupting information networks.

As with the 1976 Montreal Olympics, a period often described as the "stone age of information technology," cyberattacks disrupted information systems for 48 hours, causing many events to be postponed. At the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, the attacks were far more sophisticated and widespread, but the organizers had anticipated the risks, implemented anti-hacking solutions, and even incorporated them into the design of the sports facilities and infrastructure. Therefore, the 2021 Tokyo Olympics is considered a success in cybersecurity despite the massive attacks.

The 2024 Paris Olympics will face a new challenge: hackers could exploit the latest advances in artificial intelligence (AI). Betsy Cooper, a cybersecurity expert at the Aspen Institute in the US, believes the world is entering an era where AI can easily influence sports, from cheating in electronic refereeing systems to erasing or disrupting results. Meanwhile, according to experts, France seems to lag behind the US and Israel in the field of cybersecurity. Nevertheless, during his visit to Singapore in early April, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin affirmed that French cybersecurity companies are among the best in the industry and are renowned for their expertise worldwide.

Facing the threat of terrorism and an expected record number of tourists visiting France, the French government continues to refine its security system while monitoring and implementing additional measures as the situation evolves daily. The first measures will be implemented in early July. According to the French Ministry of Interior, approximately 45,000 regular security personnel are expected to be deployed, along with the assistance of nearly 300,000 private security guards, during the Olympic Games.

MINH CHAU

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/olympic-paris-2024-va-noi-lo-tin-tac-post737744.html