These Holiday Scams Shouldn’t Be Trusted

Cybercrime is high this holiday season. Phishing is the top threat to small businesses at this time of the year.

Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) need to be trained in security awareness. It can be difficult to keep up with the changing cyber threats and learn how to stay safe. It seems, just like the mythical Hydra with many heads that produced two new heads for each one Hercules cut off, that every cyber threat that has been mitigated will produce at least two more.

What is Phishing?

Phishing is a type of fraud that aims to obtain sensitive information from an unsuspecting target by posing as a trusted entity and contacting them via email, instant messaging (IM), or SMS (“SmiShing”) Phishing refers to a social engineering attack in which threat actors psychologically manipulate victims to give away personal identifiable information (PII), credit card details, and other valuable information. To convince victims into giving out sensitive information, phishers use technological mimicry (also known as spoofing) to present themselves as trustworthy individuals or organizations and facilitate the “retrieval of” the victim’s private information.

A typical phishing attack targets many email addresses and sends a message with malicious attachments or links. To appear to be a trusted entity, an attacker uses email spoofing in order to trick recipients into believing that the message was sent from a well-known agency or company.

The email template also looks like the official logo of the impersonated company. This message is designed to instill a sense of urgency among readers by describing a problem that needs immediate attention.

Victims are told, for example, that their user accounts must be reset or updated to ensure security. Victims are informed that they can resolve the problem by entering sensitive information such as login credentials on the website of the alleged source. The link takes victims to a fake website, although the URL may closely match the official one. The attacker can harvest any information victims enter on the fake site if they comply.

The risks for SMBs

Phishing is a popular attack method used by threat actors. It is often considered to be the greatest cybersecurity threat to small businesses. A recent industry report found that 93% of security breaches resulted from cyberattacks using phishing or similar social engineering methods.

A successful phishing attack against a small company often signals the beginning of a larger campaign in which criminals use information obtained from targeted employees to infiltrate the company network and execute a BEC fraud or commit other crimes. Phishing messages can also be used to distribute malicious software (malware), such as ransomware, onto targeted systems.

Similar to charity donations and retail sales, phishing attempts increase during the holiday season. A recent report found that the annual average was 50% higher for attacks in November, December, and October 2017. This phishing surge is bad news for both individuals and organisations. Every year, the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team(US-CERT), issues a warning about seasonal scams.

SMBs are more at risk than larger companies because 32% of them do not organize simulations and training sessions to teach staff how to spot and avoid phishing scams. A mere 30% of small businesses have an IT security specialist to help them keep their company safe.

These examples are based on real holiday phishing scams

There are many ways to phish during holidays. While some campaigns look similar to those seen throughout the year, others are more specific to holiday-themed attacks. These two scenarios are fictional and show how holiday phishing scams actually work. They also illustrate the devastating effects that an attack can have on small businesses.

Scenario one: Shipping notification scam

The office manager at a small accounting firm gets an email in December that appears to be from UPS. The email contains a link that includes a tracking number. It states that the shipment was not delivered. To resolve the problem, the employee is asked to contact UPS via the URL provided. The office manager assumes that the shipment is an important order he is expecting. He clicks the link quickly and fills in the details of his company and address on the UPS page. He enters almost immediately the details of his office credit card when he is asked for payment for minor extra charges. The next day, the shipments arrived and the office manager quickly forgets all about it. The office manager realizes that he was a victim of a phishing scheme after the new year. His boss asks him how company credit card was maxed out over the holidays. The UPS email and the website where he entered his credit card details were fakes. The office manager didn’t pay for any shipment, but instead gave cybercriminals the information they needed in order to steal tens and thousands of dollars from the small company.

Scenario two: Holiday E-card scam

The owner of a small online shop finds an email from Hallmark in her inbox a few days before Christmas. The message claims that she received an E-card for Christmas. She thought the card might have been from a customer and opened the attached file. It appears to be a Microsoft Office document. Instead of an E-card, however, the file opens as a text file containing gibberish. Although the webshop owner intends to contact Hallmark regarding the issue, she doesn’t get around to it during busy holiday seasons. The webshop owner eventually admits to her regret that her business won’t survive another holiday season after falling for an E-card fraud a few weeks later. The E-card contained a malicious XML file which launched a PowerShell script as soon as it was opened. This resulted in the sophisticated Emotet banking Trojan being installed onto the victim’s computer. The Emotet malware was easily detected by an anti-malware program running on the targeted system. It also harvested the victim’s PII and credit card information, as well as login credentials for different user accounts including online banking systems. This information was used by the cybercriminals to delete the bank accounts of the webshop owners, leaving them with insufficient funds to continue her business.

Another example of holiday phishing scams is:

Phony vouchers are fake discounts or gift coupons that victims can use to shop online. To redeem the voucher, recipients must click on a link to fill out sensitive information. This is a fake website.

Bogus donations: Victims are asked for money in Christmas spirit to support a charity. Victims who fall for this scam end up “donating” their credit card details as well as their PII to cybercriminals.

Scammers use fake e-commerce sites and social media channels to lure victims into placing orders. They will require credit card details and sensitive data.

How can you stay safe?

There are many things you can do to help protect your business against holiday phishing scams.

Keep your software current by installing a trusted anti-malware program

Protecting your system starts with proper patch management. A professional security suite is a good investment. You can get a free solution from any reputable developer if you are hesitant.

managed firewalls Wilmington NC

Use a secure email gateway

Secure email gateways (SEGs), which provide enhanced protection against phishing attacks, check incoming messages for spam, evidence email spoofing, and impersonation attacks.

Promote phishing awareness training and simulations.

Staff can learn about phishing scams through phishing awareness training. Meanwhile, SMBs can use phishing simulations to evaluate their employees’ cybersecurity habits.

Adopt multi-factor authentication (MFA)

MFA isn’t suitable for most SMBs, but it can be a great way to protect small businesses from security breaches due to phishing. It will ensure that your business accounts are protected even if login credentials are compromised by an employee falling for the phishing scam.

For electronic communication, you must ensure that your vetting process is thorough

Never open an email attachment or click on links or images in emails from unknown senders. Double-check the sender address for messages that appear to be from familiar sources. Remember that just because the address appears to be legitimate, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the message is secure. Threat actors could have compromised the account or spoofed it. Notice that messages may contain language errors, strange phraseology, lucrative offers, urgent requests, desperate pleas, or threatening language. Avoid interacting with attachments and images that you don’t expect to receive. Always hover over links to verify the URL. It is possible to type the URL into your browser to open the website directly. Do not trust URLs that start with HTTPS.

For malicious code, scan email attachments

You don’t really have to open an attachment from an email. Instead, scan the contents for malicious code using a sophisticated antimalware solution or a web-based antimalware service like VirusTotal. Concerning the last option, ensure that you agree with the privacy policies of the solution.

Don’t give sensitive information away

Legitimate organizations won’t ask for credit card information or login credentials via email, text, or IM. You almost certainly have to deal with a threat actor if you receive such requests.

Last but not least, please share this report with your business partners/colleagues.

Your organization will be safer if you share information about phishing prevention.

Call SpartanTec, Inc. now for more information about managed IT services and they can help protect your business against online threats.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255
http://manageditserviceswilmington.com

Serving: Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Columbia, Wilmington, Fayetteville, Florence, Charleston

Phishing Scams During Christmas

 Email security is the last thing on your mind during the holiday season. However, cybercriminals will exploit this time of year and use it to their advantage. Just as Santa makes his way down your chimney, they use cunning ways to victimize you and it’ll be too late once you realize that you’ve become one of their preys.

What makes an organization vulnerable during this season? A lot of phishing emails look are disguised as legitimate emails from retail companies, banks, and parcel services. They contain links to real looking but fake websites that contain infected links or ask for your personal details.

 

 

When your staff gets distracted about the parcels that they’re about to receive, they have higher risks of clicking and downloading links that are infected. A lot of offices operate with a skeleton staff or relief/casual staff, so in case they are not savvy to these cyber scams or you do not have any top quality cybersecurity set in place, there’s a huge chance that these kinds of emails will cause damages to your company.

Why are there a lot of Christmas phishing Wilmington NC scams? There are advanced phishing scams that will take more than a week or even months to detect that you’ve been victimized. You may not even know that you downloaded an infected file until it’s too late and your personal or financial information was already stolen and the damage has been done.

Cybersecurity Tips You Need To Know

• Data backup is crucial. You have to do this every day.
• Make sure that the operating systems and all applications are updated.
• Set up a multi-layered defence program such as web filtering services, cloud based email, anti-spyware, anti-malware, and anti-virus systems.
• Your staff computers must have firewall installed. You should also increase the security settings on all internet browsers.
• The use of iPhones, iPads, USBs and other external devices that are not approved by the company should be limited.
• Always be vigilant especially when sharing your information online.
• Never click on unsolicited emails containing executable files such as .exe or .zip files.
• Keep in mind that a reputable business won’t send an email asking for your personal or financial information.

SpartanTec, Inc. is committed to making sure that your workplace is safe from cybersecurity threats like phishing emails. Call us now.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Myrtle Beach, SC 29577
(843) 420-9760
https://www.spartantec.com/

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255
http://manageditserviceswilmington.com

Serving: Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Columbia, Wilmington, Fayetteville, Florence

What Is A Phishing Attack?

Phishing is a kind of social engineering attack that is commonly used to steal user information including credit card numbers and login credentials. It takes place when an attacker, pretending to be a trusted entity, fools someone into opening a text message, instant message, or an email. The recipient is then duped into clicking a malicious link that can result into the installation of malware, revealing sensitive information, or freezing the device as of the ransomware attack.

An attack could have devastating consequences like identity theft, stealing of funds, or unauthorized purchases.

Aside from that, phishing Wilmington NC is commonly used to obtain a foothold in governmental or corporate networks as a part of wide scale attack like an APT or advanced persistent threat. In the last situation, employees are then compromised to bypass the security protocols that have been set up, spread the malware within a closed environment, or obtain access to sensitive data.

A company that succumbs to this type of cyberattack generally suffers severe financial losses apart from declining reputation, consumer trust, and market share. Depending on the attack’s scope, a phishing incident may turn into a security incident from which a company will have a hard time recovering.

Examples of Phishing Attacks

• Spoofed email from myuniversity.edu that’s distributed widely to countless faculty members
• Emails claiming that the user’s password is set to expire

Phishing Techniques

1. Email Phishing Scams – is considered to be a numbers game wherein the attacker sends thousands of fake messages. Doing so allows them to get significant information and cash, even if only a few people fall victim to the phishing scam. Attackers will try to replicate actual emails from a spoofed company. They will use the same typefaces, phrasing, logos, and signatures to make messages look legitimate.
2. Spear Phishing – this technique targets a specific technique or person, unlike random application users. It is a more comprehensive version of phishing that needs special knowledge regarding an organization like its power structure.

How To Prevent Phishing

Both users and enterprises need to take steps in order to protect themselves from phishing attacks. Users need to be vigilant. A spoofed message commonly contains subtle mistakes that will expose its real identity. These may include changes to the domain names and spelling mistakes. Users must also stop and think twice about why they are getting such an email. For companies, there are some steps they can take to mitigate the risks of facing phishing and spear phishing attacks.

1. 2FA or Two factor authentication – it is considered to be the most effective method when it comes to mitigating phishing attacks. It also adds another layer of verification when logging into confidential applications. 2FA depends on users to have two crucial things. The password and username as well as their smartphones. Even if employees are compromised, 2FA stops the use of the credentials that have been compromised, because these are not enough to get access.
2. Apart from using 2FA, companies must set in place strict password management policies.
3. Educational campaigns could also help reduce the threat of phishing attacks by make sure that secure practices.

Call SpartanTec, Inc. now and let our team assist you in securing your emails. Our IT experts will set up the most effective email security measures to mitigate risks of phishing attacks.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255
http://manageditserviceswilmington.com

Serving: Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Columbia, Wilmington, Fayetteville, Florence

5 Biggest Cybersecurity Threats That Small Businesses Face

Large enterprise and small businesses are at risk from cybersecurity threats. However, a lot of people think that small businesses are too small to be targeted by hackers. But that’s not the case.

As cyberattackers automate their tasks more, it is very easy for them to set eyes on hundreds and even thousands of small businesses all at once. Small businesses tend to have less stringent cyber defences, are less aware of potential online threats, have less resources and time to spend for cybersecurity Wilmington NC. All these make them easy targets for hackers compared to bigger firms.

However, at the same time, they are also lucrative targets. Even the smallest business can provide large sums of cash, or have access to a lot of customer data, which under GDPR or other regulations, they need to protect. Small businesses tend to work with bigger firms, and so they could be used by cybercriminals as a way to target all those companies.

Small business have a lot to lose if they get hit with a cyberattack. A report showed that companies with below 500 employees tend to lose around $2.5 million for every attack. Losing this amount of cash in a cyberbreach is going to be devastating for small businesses, not to mention the damage to the reputation, which comes from getting hit by a cyberattack.

That’s why small business have to be aware of the threats and how you can stop them.

Top 5 Security Threats and How To Avoid Them

Phishing Attacks

The most widespread, damaging, and biggest threat that small businesses face are phishing attacks. They account for about 90% of all the breaches faced by organizations. They have increased by 65% over the past year and they are responsible for more than $12 billion in business losses.

A phishing attack takes place when an attacker pretends to be a well-known and trustworthy contact, and encourages a user to download a malicious file, like, or provide access to confidential information, credentials, or account details.

You need to have a strong email security gateway to prevent phishing emails from getting to the inboxes of your employees. You can also add post delivery protection to secure your small business from phishing attacks. These solutions will let you report phishing emails and then permit admins to get rid of them permanently from the inboxes of all your employees. Security awareness training is the final layer of security against phishing attacks. With this, you can test and train your employees on how to spot phishing attacks. They will also be informed on how to report the incident.

Malware Attacks

The second biggest threat to small businesses is malware attack. It includes different cyber threats like viruses and Trojans. It is a varied term for the malicious code that hackers make to get access to steal data, get access to the network, or to get rid of data on the network. Malware may come from spam emails, connecting to other infected devices or machines, or from malicious website downloads.

These attacks can be very damaging for small businesses since they could cripple machines, which needs expensive fixes or replacements to repair. They could also provide attackers access to data, which could put employees and customers at risk. Small businesses tend to take advantage of people who use their own computer or devices when working, because it helps to save cost and time. But this boosts their chances of facing a malware attack because personal devices are more at risk from malicious downloads.

You can prevent malware attacks by setting up strong technological defenses. Web security is crucial as well as endpoint protection solutions.

Ransomware

Another common type of cyberattack that hits hundreds, and even thousands of businesses every year is ransomware. They have grown more common lately, because they are lucrative types of cyberattacks. Ransomware will encrypt company data and can’t be accessed or used unless the company pays the hacker a ransom. The company will be left with a hard choice. Will they pay the ransom and lose a lot of money or be forced to shut down their services because of data loss.

Business have to set in place strong endpoint protection across all of their devices. These will help stop these ransomware attacks from encrypting data. You should also set up an efficient cloud back-up solution because it could help mitigate data loss. There are many different ways of data back up for businesses, so it is crucial to research the best method for your organization.

Weak Passwords

Another major threat that small businesses face is employees using easily guessed or weak passwords. Several small businesses use several cloud based services that need various accounts. These services may contain financial information and confidential data. You should consider using business password management technologies to make sure that your employees always use strong passwords. This can also help your staff in managing passwords for their accounts, recommending passwords that cannot be cracked easily. You should also implement multifactor authentication technologies.

Insider Threats

The insider threat is caused by actions of current and former employees, associates and business contractors. They could access crucial data about your company that could lead to harmful effects through malice or greed, or just carelessness or ignorance. Insider threats is a growing problem. It can put your customers and employees at risk or cause financial damage to the company. As small businesses grow and have more employees, the insider threats also grow.

In order to block these insider threats, small businesses have to make sure that they impose a strong security awareness culture within the company. This can help prevent insider threats that are caused by ignorance and assist employees to detect early on if an attacker if an attacker is trying to compromise your company’s data.

There are countless threats facing small businesses these days. The way for your company to protect against these online threats is to have a set of security tools in place. Call SpartanTec, Inc. now and let our team help improve your company’s cybersecurity.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255
http://manageditserviceswilmington.com

Cities Served:
Wilmington, Silver Lake, Sea Breeze, Carolina Beach, Eagle Island, Leland, Wrightsboro

How to Identify Phishing Scams?

Scammers use text messages or email to trick you into providing them your personal details. However, there are several things you can do to protect yourself against cybercriminals.

How To Identify Phishing

Scammers use text messages or emails to trick you to giving out your personal information. They may attempt to steal crucial passwords, Social Security numbers, or account numbers. In case they obtain those details, they can get access to your bank, email, or other important accounts. Scammers launch countless phishing attacks such as these on a daily basis and in most cases, they are successful. A report from the FBI’sInternet Crime Complaint Center said that people have lost $57 million to phishing scams in a single year.

Scammers tend to update their methods however, there are signs that can help you identify if it is a phishing text message or email.

Phishing textmessages and emails may appear like they are from a firm that you know and trust. They may appear like they are from a credit card company, a bank, a social networking site, an online store, an app, or even an online payment website.

Phishing text messages and emails often tell a story so that you can be tricked into opening an attachment or clicking a link. They may do the following:

1.    Say that they noticed suspicious log in attempts or activities.

2.    Claim that there is an issue with your payment information or your account.

3.    Say that you should confirm some of your personal details.

4.    Include a fake invoice.

5.    Want you to make a payment by clicking on a link.

6.    Say that you are eligible to register for a refund from the government.

7.    Offer a coupon that you can use to claim free items.

At first look, the email or text message appear like it is real, it is not, actually. The scammers who send these emails are not connected to the real company that they pretend to be. Phishing emails could have consequences for individuals who provide their information to these scammers unknowingly. And they could harm the reputation of the businesses that they are spoofing.

Protect Yourself From Phishing Attacks

Your email spam filter an keep several phishing emails out of your inbox. However, scammers will always try to outsmart these spam filters. Therefore, it is a good idea to add more layers of protection. Here are some tips that can help you protect yourself.

1.    Use a computer software and make sure to update it automatically so it could deal with all security threats.

2.    Set up a software on your mobile phone and set it to update automatically. This will provide critical protection against various security threats.

3.    Use multi factor authentication as it offers extra security. It will need at least two credentials to log in to your personal account.

4.    Back your data regularly. But you need to make sure that these backups are not connected to your home network. You can store it in a cloud storage or in an external hard drive.

Call SpartanTec, Inc. now if you want to protect your business against phishing attacks.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255
http://manageditserviceswilmington.com

Cities Served:
Wilmington, Silver Lake, Sea Breeze, Carolina Beach, Eagle Island, Leland, Wrightsboro

Monetary Demands Are Skyrocketing For Ransomware Decryptions

Ransomware attacks have evolved quite a lot over the course of the past year, and have become one of the most visible threats organizations of all sizes face.

That is, based on recently published research conducted by Group-IB, which analyzed the rapidly changing threat landscape. Their findings should disturb every business owner.

Here's a quick overview:

First and foremost, ransomware attacks have become much more commonplace. The year 2019 saw a 40 percent increase over 2018, which is a clear indication that hackers around the world are increasingly seeing ransomware strains as their preferred vehicle for attacking organizations.

Second, the average size of the ransom demanded has been steadily increasing, moving from just $6,000 to a staggering $84,000. The focus is on large corporations and government agencies being the driving factor behind the dramatic increase.

In terms of tactics, far and away, the most common means of gaining an initial foothold onto a corporate or government network is RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol). RDP serves as the point of entry for 70 percent-80 percent of the attacks.

Aside from this, incident response teams report that exploit kits and spear phishing campaigns were also used regularly, though these were vastly overshadowed by RDP. The teams responding to Group-IB's information requests also noted that more advanced ransomware actors relied on advanced methods that gave them access to more valuable targets.

The methods the hackers used include:

• Compromising MSP's (Managed Service Providers)
• Exploiting un-patched vulnerabilities in applications
• Compromising supply chains

The bottom line is that no one is safe, and the price of a successful breach has increased dramatically. Worse, an increasing percentage of hackers are now demanding not one, but two ransoms from each target they hit. The initial payment to unlock encrypted files and a second payment to delete their copies of stolen files, rather than publishing them for all to see.

The best way to keep your company safe from this particular threat is to minimize your reliance on RDP and to make sure you've got a robust backup plan in place. If you haven't yet taken both steps, the time to do so is now.

Call SpartanTec, Inc. now and let our IT team help keep your company safe by setting up the most effective cybersecurity strategies to protect your business against online threats. 

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255
http://manageditserviceswilmington.com

Cities Served:
Wilmington, Silver Lake, Sea Breeze, Carolina Beach, Eagle Island, Leland, Wrightsboro

Phishing Attacks Increase As Pandemic Scams Flourish

Phishing attacks increase around the world as scammers exploit COVID-19 uncertainty. 

Pandemic scammers are pulling out all the stops as phishing attacks increase in both frequency and creativity. In the wake of COVID-19 and the changes that it wrought including an increasing reliance on a remote workforce and virtual meetings plus cloud-based operations and storage, bad actors are scrambling to profit.

Get tips to help secure a remote workforce fast and insight into the unexpected risks that remote operations bring in our Remote Working Cybersecurity resource package.

With an over 600% increase, phishing attacks are a plague on cybersecurity teams around the world. UN cybersecurity officials estimate that a new phishing attack happens every 39 seconds. Most people are aware of phishing and know that they should be suspicious of fake-looking email. But they’re still falling for them. What can businesses do to combat this phishing attack increase and keep their data and systems safe?

One word: training. It’s something you hear about frequently in cybersecurity circles, and it’s always at the forefront of the conversation because it works. As cybersecurity professionals including CISA  sound the alarm about the precipitous increase in phishing, companies should immediately start refreshing their phishing training. Well-trained staffers are the first and best line of defense that an organization can deploy to stop phishing attacks.

Download our eBook “One Phish, Two Phish” to get the facts on phishing and actionable intelligence about steps that companies can take immediately to defend against phishing attacks.

We’re passionate about the training and testing tools that we’ve created for BullPhish ID. We know that frequent, up-to-date training and testing works, and we want to help companies resist phishing attacks and protect their data. We never stop innovating to make sure that every staffer is ready to face the latest threats.

Take a look at what BullPhish ID has to offer by the numbers:

• Over 80 phishing kits (including test email, related landing page, and reply email) 
• 50 security video campaigns (short animated video with test and reply email)  
• 27 training videos in 8 languages 
• Training and testing materials available in 8 languages: English, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish (Iberian/European), and Spanish (Latin) 
• 6 new kits and 4 new courses added every month including COVID-19 scam kits 
• Take a look at BullPhish ID’s state-of-the-art training and testing in this 10-minute video demo. 

It’s clear that we’ve created a dynamic phishing training and testing solution that’s ready to address the complexities of today’s phishing attacks – at a price that fits into any cybersecurity budget. And beefing up phishing defense training is always going to be more affordable than cleaning up the mess after a data breach or ransomware disaster.

As cybercriminals have pursued exceedingly more sophisticated vectors of attack, we’ve matched them by providing increasingly more sophisticated training to empower staffers at any organization to stay vigilant against their tricks. Contact ID Agent to get started with BullPhish ID now and save headaches later.

THIS IS THE DARK WEB

And we help to keep you out of it.

Our Dark Web monitoring platform provides the most validated credential exposure data available.  SpartanTec , Inc. and ID Agent's sophisticated intelligence allows companies to focus on their business with peace of mind.

Call SpartanTec Inc. today for a review of your companies security.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255
http://manageditserviceswilmington.com

Cities Served:
Wilmington, Silver Lake, Sea Breeze, Carolina Beach, Eagle Island, Leland, Wrightsboro

Cybersecurity Threats To Watch Out For In 2020

Are You At Risk?

Various evolving and new cybersecurity threats has put the information security sector on high alert. Cyberattacks including malware, phishing, ransomware, and cryptocurrency have put the assets and data of governments, corporations, as well as individuals at risk all the time.

The sector continues to face a shortage of IT experts and industry professionals warn that the stakes have grown higher than ever. Moreover, cybercrime is shaking the faith of the public in many of their cherished ideals like personal privacy, democracy, as well capitalism.

Top Threats To Cybersecurity

More Sophisticated Phishing Campaigns

Phishing attacks are becoming much more sophisticated. Hackers are doing what they can to up the ante especially now that employees of companies are becoming more aware of the dangers of this kind of attack.

Ransomware Strategies Evolve

Victims of ransomware attacks face billions of dollars worth of losses every year while hackers use technologies that allow them to kidnap someone or the databases of an organization while holding all of the details for ransom. The increase of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin is credited with assisting in fueling ransomware attacks by letting anonymous payments be made to answer ransom demands.

Cyprtojacking

The movement of cryptocurrency have various effect on cybersecurity. In cryptojacking, cybercriminals hijack third party work or home computers so they could mine them for cryptocurrency. Since cryptocurrency mining needs immense power for computer processing, cybercriminals can make a lot of cash by piggybacking secretly on the system of someone else. Cryptojacked systems for businesses can lead to major performance problems and expensive downtime as IT experts do what they can to monitor and fix the issue.

Cyber-physical Attacks

Technology has allowed consumers to computerize and modernize important infrastructure however, it also poses risks. The continuous threat of hacking that target electrical grids, water treatment facilities, as well as transportation systems shows vulnerability moving forward.

State-sponsored attacks

Aside from hackers who want to make a quick profit through stealing corporate and individual data, states are also using their cyber skills to get access to and even attack other state’s infrastructure. Today’s cybercrime has become a major threat for individuals, the private sector, as well as the government, and the entire nation in general. This year, state sponsored cyberattacks will increase and the most prevalent ones are those that are directed toward critical infrastructure.

IoT Attacks

The Internetof Things have started to become more common as the day goes by. IoT includes tablets and laptops, webcams, routers, smart watches, household appliances, automobiles, manufacturing equipment, home security systems, and medical devices.

These devices are handy for many consumers and companies as it could save them cash by gathering a lot of insightful data and making business processes more streamlined. 

However, an increased number in connected device also means much greater risks, which makes IoT Networks more vulnerable to cyber invasions as well as infections. IoT devices, when controlled by cybercriminals, can be utilized to wreak havoc, lock down important equipment, and even overload networks.

Shortage of Cybersecurity Professionals

The number of cybercrimes have increased over the past few years while governments and companies have had a hard time hiring enough qualified ITexperts to help curb the threat. The trend is expected to continue this year and beyond. Estimates revealed that about one million positions in the IT sector will remain unfilled across the world.

Call SpartanTec,Inc. if you need the help of IT experts in making sure that your business is secured and protected against the common online threats this year.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255
https://spartantec-wilmingtonnc.business.site/

Cities Served:
Wilmington, Silver Lake, Sea Breeze, Carolina Beach, Eagle Island, Leland, Wrightsboro