As business paradigms have changed over the past few decades, so have the issues and threats they are faced with. Cybersecurity is one of those neglected issues that has now become a significant menace that businesses across the globe fear. According to the Ninth Annual Cost of Cybercrime Study, there is a 67 percent increase in security breaches in the last five years.
Types of Cyber Security Threats
There most common security threats that being faced by companies are:
- Malware: Malicious software such as spyware, ransomware, command, and control execute unauthorized actions without the consent of the user.
- Phishing: Social engineering attacks aim to steal sensitive information such as credit card numbers and login credentials. This type of attack uses disguised email as a weapon.
- Man-in-the-middle attack: Attacker secretly alters the communication between two parties who assume that they are communicating with each other.
- Denial-of-service attack: Attacker floods the server or network more than its prescribed bandwidth and resources, resulting in shutting down of the system or network.
- Structured Query Language (SQL) Injection: Attacker inserts malicious codes into the server and forces to expose information.
What to Do if You’ve Fallen Victim
Once the breach is detected, it is imperative to act comprehensively and proactively. Key steps that can be taken by the team are as follows:
- Form a response team: To address the cyberattack, it is vital to form a response team that can identify the type of attack and works towards resolving it. The response team should include professionals other than the IT team as the effects of attack is manifold.
- Secure Systems and isolate the breach: The response team has to isolate or suspend the compromised section. The team needs to undertake tests in case other portions of the network are compromised.
- Undertake Investigation: It is best to investigate the attack in detail and its impact and create an immediate response plan.
- Manage public relations: Not all cyberattacks need to be made public. Still, in case the individual/client data has been compromised, the company should be honest and open about their communication.
How to Prevent Future Attacks
- Awareness about Cyber Crimes: Creating awareness among employees is the simplest step towards preventing future attacks, which is often neglected. The company should regularly educate their employees regarding the same.
- Use Two-Factor Authentication: In order to reduce the risk, use two-factor authentication as it increases security by adding a step for accessing accounts.
- Creating Backup: It is essential to invest in a robust backup system to mitigate the risk of the cyberattack. While creating a backup, the company should ensure that the backup data is saved separately in a different storage infrastructure.
- Invest Threat Hunting Software: Most importantly, companies should invest in threat hunting software as it proactively searches for cyber threats. Learn more about threat hunting here.
Cyberthreat Is Here to Stay; Gear Up & Don’t Fall Prey
According to the University of Maryland, hackers attack every 39 seconds, on average, 2,244 times a day. Cyberattacks will be the biggest threat that companies and businesses will be facing in the coming future. The World Economic Forum warns that cyberattacks will be as likely as natural disasters, as devastating as ecosystem collapse. It’s up to the businesses to gear up and develop strategies to cope with these attacks with changing times.
