Threat Management, Network Security

Star Search: McAfee names riskiest celebs to look up online

Interested in watching free episodes of "The Handmaid's Tale," starring Alexis Bledel? Care to look up your favorite episode of James Corden's Carpool Karaoke? Search for them online at your own peril.

McAfee has unveiled its 2019 list of the most dangerous celebrities, revealing which stars are the riskiest to search for online, based on their likelihood to expose users to malicious content. Cybercriminals, after all, are always looking for popular subjects and celebrities as inspiration for lures in hopes of tricking users into clicking on malicious links.

Bledel and Corden landed at the top of the list at one and two, respectively, followed by Sophie Turner, Anna Kendrick, Lupita Nyong'o, Tessa Thompson, Jimmy Fallon, Jackie Chan, Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj and Tessa Thompson.

Alexis Bledel

"This year's study emphasizes that today's streaming culture doesn’t exactly protect users from cybercriminals," stated McAfee Chief Consumer Security Evangelist Gary Davis in a blog post this week." For example, Alexis Bledel and Sophie Turner are strongly associated with searches including the term 'torrent,' indicating that many fans of 'The Handmaid's Tale' and 'Game of Thrones' have been pursuing free options to avoid subscription fees. However, users must understand that torrent or pirated downloads can open themselves up to an abundance of cyberthreats."

Bradley Barth

As director of multimedia content strategy at CyberRisk Alliance, Bradley Barth develops content for online conferences, webcasts, podcasts video/multimedia projects — often serving as moderator or host. For nearly six years, he wrote and reported for SC Media as deputy editor and, before that, senior reporter. He was previously a program executive with the tech-focused PR firm Voxus. Past journalistic experience includes stints as business editor at Executive Technology, a staff writer at New York Sportscene and a freelance journalist covering travel and entertainment. In his spare time, Bradley also writes screenplays.

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