Bitdefender has announced a strategic partnership with the Creators Guild of America to provide digital security solutions tailored for online content creators. The partnership aims to raise awareness of the critical need for creators to protect their digital identities, content, and personal information from increasingly sophisticated and costly cyber threats.
Attacks on content creators and online influencers have surged alongside the proliferation of deepfake technologies, posing a significant threat to their livelihoods and to their followers’ as well. A recent study by Bitdefender Labs detected over 9,000 malicious livestreams on YouTube alone, with cybercriminals rebranding compromised channels to appear legitimate. Compromised accounts include established influencers with millions of followers and billions of views.
“Cybercriminals target content creators to exploit the vast networks of fans, followers, and sponsors they’ve worked hard to build,” said Ciprian Istrate, senior vice president of operations, Consumer Solutions Group at Bitdefender. “Once inside a creator’s network, they can inflict significant damage – rapidly moving across platforms, launching malicious livestreams, and spreading fraudulent links to maximise impact. We’re proud to partner with the Creators Guild of America to raise awareness and help defend against this growing threat.”
The two organisations plan to create joint awareness campaigns, webinars, research and other content to educate content creators about the importance of securing their online channels and steps they can take to better protect themselves.
Bitdefender recently launched the industry’s first complete security solution designed to protect digital content producers, online creative professionals, and social media influencers. Bitdefender Security for Creators is a comprehensive cybersecurity suite that continuously monitors YouTube creators’ devices and networks for anomalous behaviour, phishing emails, malicious URLs, files, and malware—delivering real-time alerts to help stop threats before damage occurs.
“Creators need protection. Most creators are first-time entrepreneurs, working in a field that’s new and unregulated. That makes them (and their channels) unusually vulnerable to attack and exploitation. Building an audience and a brand from scratch is incredibly difficult, but getting hacked and losing everything you’ve worked for is far too easy,” stated Daniel Abas, founder and president, Creators Guild of America.
“Companies like Bitdefender are making real progress against the growing security threats to creators and their channels, and the CGA is proud to support their work. Creators need and deserve the same level of security enjoyed by brick-and-mortar businesses, and we’re encouraged to see Bitdefender rising to meet that challenge.”