There is no shortage of news around targeted cyber attacks that are deliberately aimed at high profile individuals and groups. At Google, we have an entire team dedicated to detecting and stopping the world’s most sophisticated cyber criminals, and we have spent years working on advanced security solutions, like our Advanced Protection Program (APP), that users can turn on to instantly increase their protections from these types of attacks.
APP brings Google’s strongest security protections together into a holistic program that is constantly upgraded in response to emerging threats. APP is available to all users, but is specifically designed for individuals and organizations at higher risk of targeted online attacks, such as elected officials, political campaigns, human rights activists and journalists.
Users who enroll in APP are protected against a wide variety of online threats, including sophisticated phishing attacks (through the use of security keys), malware and other malicious downloads on Chrome and Android, and unauthorized access to their personal account data (such as Gmail, Drive or Photos). As new threats are discovered, APP evolves to provide the latest protections.
As part of our work to keep our users safer and increase awareness of APP, we partnered with organizations across the globe to provide free security keys to over 10,000 high risk users throughout 2021.
How We are Bringing APP to High Risk Users
Cybersecurity is a team sport – it requires more than just one company’s commitment. That’s why we are constantly working to foster relationships with organizations outside of Google that are also committed to educating users and advancing cybersecurity. The more high risk users that we can get into a protected state, the safer we all are.
These are a few of the organizations and programs that we are partnering with to enhance security for our most at-risk users:
International Foundation for Electoral Systems
As a global leader in democracy promotion, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) engages with critical issues in democracy, governance and elections around the world. We’re collaborating with IFES on global educational security programming for at-risk groups, so those who work to safeguard human rights can stay safe online. This year we’ve supported IFES with free security keys for attendees of their global cyber hygiene trainings, including journalists in the Middle East and women activists in Asia through their virtual “She Leads” series. In 2022, we will expand our work with IFES through a continued contribution of Titan Security keys and educational materials for their high risk user trainings.
