Benzinga | Sep 17, 2021 01:41PM EDT

Facebook Competitor Surfaces As Cyber Criminal Hub: FT

* Telegram has emerged as a hub for cybercriminals looking to buy, sell and share stolen data and hacking tools, Financial Times reports as per Cyberint's research.

* Telegram has over 500 million active users and is one of the ten most downloaded apps globally.

* The research group detected a ballooning network of hackers sharing data leaks, sometimes in channels with thousands of subscribers, which could jeopardize its plans of initial public offering and introduction of advertising.

* The content resembled that of dark web marketplaces and was more user-friendly compared to the dark web.

* Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) owned WhatsApp's new privacy policy explains the users' exodus to Telegram.

* The posts offered emails and passwords useful for hacking video game platforms and user login details for Yandex NV (NASDAQ:YNDX), Alphabet Inc's (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google, and Yahoo. Data offered for sale also included credit card information, copies of passports, and credentials for bank accounts, and Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX).

* The FT report also quoted that vpnMentor had found data dumps circulating on Telegram from previous hacks and data leaks of companies, including Facebook.

* Cyberint analyst Tal Samra explained the transition from the dark web to Telegram due to encryption anonymity and less likeliness of tracking.

* Hackers avoided WhatsApp for privacy reasons and for displaying users' numbers in group chats, unlike Telegram.

* Related Content: Why Are Facebook's Shares Under Pressure?

* Price Action: FB shares traded lower by 2.28% at $364.54 on the last check Friday.