Commenting on the findings of the report, Venkatasubrahmanyam Krishnapur, Senior Director, McAfee India, said, "In a celebrity crazy country such as India, cyber criminals find it very lucrative to use the names of popular figures as keywords to lure people to websites with malicious software. This year’s study found movie stars top the “most dangerous” list, while sports stars and politicians are among the safest.”
Fans looking for results on search engines using strings such as ‘name of celebrity’ combined with words like ‘free downloads’, ‘hot pictures’, ‘screen savers’, and ‘videos’ are at risk of running themselves into websites with malicious software and online threats designed to steal personal information.
“Searching for top celebrities continues to generate risky results,” said Paula Greve, director of Web security research at McAfee. “Consumers should be particularly aware of malicious content hiding in ‘tiny’ places like shortened URLs that can spread virally in social networking sites, or through e-mails and text messages from friends.”
The study for ‘Most Dangerous Celebrity’ used the McAfee® SiteAdvisor® site ratings which indicate the sites that are risky to search for celebrity names on the web and calculate an overall risk percentage. The top 10 celebrities in India from this year’s study with the highest risk percentages are:
Position
Celebrity
1
Katrina Kaif – The most dangerous celebrity of 2011 is a British Indian actress and former model. Searching for Katrina Kaif results in a 10.26 % chance of landing on a risky web site.
2
Deepika Padukone – The actress of ‘Om shanti Om’ and ‘Love Aaj kal’ fame is the second most dangerous celebrity, with searches resulting in a 10% chance of being led to a malicious website.
3
Kareena Kapoor – The 3rd Most Dangerous Celebrity and winner of six filmfare awards has a 9.8 % possibility of making users fall into a trap of malware laden websites.
4
Saif Ali Khan – Saif Ali Khan has an 8.24 % chance of leading users to malicious sites. The versatile Indian actor made his debut in the Bollywood industry two decades ago.
5
John Abraham- India’s heart throb takes the fifth position on the list; with a risk percentile of 8.07%.
6
Priyanka Chopra – This former Miss World who has been the reigning queen of Bollywood occupies the sixth position on the Most Dangerous Celebrities list with a risk percentile of 8%.
7
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan - Touted as ‘the most beautiful woman in the world’; Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is the seventh most dangerous celebrity. Over the years, Aishwarya has gained international fame and global value by starring in Hollywood movies and endorsing luxury brands.
8
Bipasha Basu - In her decade long career, this Bengali beauty has starred in block buster movies such as Dhoom 2, Omkara and Race. On the 8th position in the Most Dangerous Celebrities ranking, she has a 7.82% percentile of leading users to a malicious site.
9
Aamir Khan – One of the most revered stars in Bollywood, Aamir Khan has redefined the trends of the Hindi film industry with his roles in movies such as Lagaan and 3 Idiots. With a risk percentile of 7.65%, he is on the ninth position in our Most Dangerous Celebrities ranking.
10
Shah Rukh Khan – King Khan is at the tenth position on the Most Dangerous Celebrities list with a risk percentile of 6%.
Keep Safe While Searching Online with McAfee Total Protection software
McAfee security experts urge consumers to surf safely by using McAfee Total Protection™ security software, a security suite that offers consumers anti-virus, anti-spyware, identity and firewall protection, and with SiteAdvisor, which displays red, yellow or green web safety ratings within Internet search results pages. It also blocks risky websites, adds anti-phishing protection, and helps users more safely surf, shop and bank online. Consumers can also safely surf the Web by using Secure Search box located within the web browser, which automatically blocks “red” sites within a user’s search results that have potentially dangerous downloads including viruses, spyware and other harmful software. Web surfers should visit the McAfee Security Advice Center and Facebook page at www.facebook.com/mcafee for information on the latest threats, and tips on surfing safely. A complimentary version of SiteAdvisor software can be downloaded quickly at www.siteadvisor.com.
About McAfee SiteAdvisor technology
McAfee SiteAdvisor technology protects users from malicious websites and browser exploits. SiteAdvisor technology tests and rates nearly every trafficked site on the Internet and uses red, yellow and green icons to indicate the website’s risk level. SiteAdvisor site ratings are created by using patented advanced technology to conduct automated website tests SiteAdvisor software works with Internet Explorer and Firefox.
About McAfee
McAfee, a wholly owned subsidiary of Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC), is the world's largest dedicated security technology company. McAfee delivers proactive and proven solutions and services that help secure systems, networks, and mobile devices around the world, allowing users to safely connect to the Internet, browse and shop the Web more securely. Backed by its unrivaled Global Threat Intelligence, McAfee creates innovative products that empower home users, businesses, the public sector and service providers by enabling them to prove compliance with regulations, protect data, prevent disruptions, identify vulnerabilities, and continuously monitor and improve their security. McAfee is relentlessly focused on constantly finding new ways to keep our customers safe. http://www.mcafee.com/
