Cyberattacks are increasing and you have to be proactive in protecting your company. Many companies are significantly underinvesting in cybersecurity, despite the obvious risks.
What are the risks that your company is exposed to? How can you reduce the risk? This article will tell you all you need to know.
Ransomware
Ransomware is a major cyber threat that your company faces in 2021. Ransomware can bankrupt your business, it is not an exaggeration.
Ransomware is a malicious cyber attack that encrypts all files on your computer. This makes your files unreadable unless you pay the ransom to unlock the decryption code.
Ransomware attackers generally expect that you pay the ransom via cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin. This allows criminals to remain relatively anonymous.
Many ransom-paying victims will pay the ransom. But be careful. There is no guarantee you will get your files back if you are dealing with criminals.
Ransomware can even block your ability to decrypt files. Other ransomware might ask for more money after you have already paid.
There is a foolproof way to get rid of ransomware. You only need to run a backup system that covers all your bases and ransomware will be rendered ineffective.
You can simply roll back to a backup and all your files will be restored. A ransomware attack can be disastrous if you don’t have backups.
Managed IT services can help you install an automated backup system in your company.
Cryptojacking
Another cyber attack that is linked to cryptocurrency is this. You can earn cryptocurrency like Bitcoin by “mining”. Crypto mining is the use of your computer’s processing power to perform calculations. Your setup will be more powerful, which increases your chances of earning crypto.
It can be very expensive to run a well-designed setup. You will need to purchase all the equipment and pay the electricity bill.
Cryptojacking is basically the use of malware to force all these expenses onto a victim. Crypto mining software is installed on victim’s computer by hackers. All earnings are then siphoned into criminal’s accounts.
Cryptojackers are generally looking for people with powerful computers. This type of attack could also be directed at companies that work with powerful workstations.
This type of malware can be detected by antivirus software. Cryptojacking can be difficult to detect because they only mine data when the user isn’t physically present at the computer.
Refusal to Provide Service
Although denial of service attacks are a less common form of cybercriminality, they still pose a threat to your business. A denial-of-service attack is when cybercriminals flood your network with false requests.
This can cause system overload and stop legitimate traffic from reaching the site. This could be a problem if your webshop is being run.
The distributed denial-of-service attack is a variation on the denial-of service attack. This is done by hacking other computers in order to create a botnet. The botnet then performs denial-of-service attacks for the cybercriminal.
These types of attacks are now less effective. You can use denial-of-service protection to protect your website from attacks that could cause a denial or service attack.
This basically involves screening all visitors to your site and verifying that they are legitimate. This could be done by a managed IT service company.
Phishing Attack
Another classic cyberattack is the Phishing attack. Phishing is a technique that tricks a user to enter their username and password on a fake website. A fake website is created that looks almost exactly like the real one. They then try to convince victims to visit the site and enter their credentials.
A phishing attack might send an email with a link to the site to victims. The victim will not be able to log in and the password will be sent to criminals.
Knowing the signs is key to avoiding this type of compromise. Phishing attackers may set up a website with exactly the same URL as their target website, but with one letter different.
Avoid falling for this scam by only using your bookmarks to navigate to sensitive sites and not through an email link.
Social Engineering is one of the most dangerous cyber threats.
Cyberattacks using social engineering are the most serious. These attacks are also the most common type of cyberattack that companies are not prepared for.
Social engineering is the use of clever social trickery in order to persuade people to provide information to cybercriminals. A social engineering attack could involve calling an employee pretending to be at the head office of your company.
The attacker might convince the victim to give up their password if they can convince them that they are genuine.
It is very difficult to defend yourself against social engineering attacks. These attacks are not protected by antivirus software or firewalls. Social engineering can be stopped by a strong security culture in your company.
Employees must be taught how to recognize potential security threats. It is possible to reduce the damage by limiting access to data that employees need to perform their jobs.
