By Stephanie Baskerville on July 10, 2018

Biggest Security Threats: Any Data You Have is of Value to a Hacker!

 

As an organization, what are your biggest security threats? Disruptions can come in any number of forms: from natural disasters, to human error, to deliberate security issues, like cybersecurity attacks or data breaches. From a security point of view, these disruptions can have widespread impact within an organization by leaving that organization vulnerable to further attacks.

As we’ve seen in the news over the past few years, cyberattacks will continue to evolve as threat actors look for new opportunities to arise. NotPetya, for example, was a malware variant to Petya ransomware, and used the same EternalBlue NSA hack that WannaCry used to encrypt a user’s files.  Security company Symantec says that ransomware attacks are one of the key cyberthreats that are facing organizations, stating that “ransomware can have a major impact on their bottom line, from financial losses, disruption, and reputational damage”.

So, what are the biggest security issues to organizations today? Who’s affected by them? Who needs to be the most concerned? This blog will explore these questions and help you understand the security landscape a little further. Need more help? ProServeIT makes it our mission to add a security lens to everything we do, so give us a shout!

 

3-main-security-issues-1

 

2 of the Biggest Security Threats (and 1 positive security issue) to Pay Attention To

Aside from ransomware, here are two of the biggest security threats that organizations should pay attention to, plus we’ll discuss a positive security issue as well:

Disruptive Technology Trends

Disruptive technology is the latest “widget” or “whatsit” that displaces an established technology and drives innovation. Simply put, it’s a new technology that shakes up the industry. Consider how the computer displaced the typewriter, or when email was introduced and it disrupted the way that the world communicated. These are early examples of disruptive technology.

Disruptive technology isn’t going anywhere. Back in 2015, Forbes put out an article that said that, thanks to the introduction of such things as Cloud, Software-as-a-Service, and Internet of Things (IoT), every company is now a technology company. If your organization is using SharePoint, for example, you have the ability to create an app from scratch that can be not only used internally, but sold to other organizations that are similar to yours who are looking for similar solutions. And you don’t even need to be a programmer to do it!

With any new disruptive technology that you’re introducing or incorporating into your business, you need to make sure that it’s properly secured. By not ensuring this, you could potentially open yourself and your organization up to some major security threats and issues down the road.

Threat Landscape Developments

Every year, new security threats emerge that can pose serious risks to businesses. In the 2017 ENISA Threat Landscape Report, they summarize 15 of the top cyberthreats to be aware of, like malware, web-based attacks, phishing, ransomware, and more. It’s clear that each year, the biggest security threats are evolving, becoming more advanced and more sophisticated. Are you prepared for them, and have you taken the necessary steps to defend yourself?

Start exploring your options. Windows 10, Enterprise Mobility + Security, Windows Information Protection, and Advanced Threat Protection are just some of the great tools that are available to assist you in protecting your environment against some of the biggest security threats. Or, consider something like ProServeIT’s 5-day IT Security Roadmap Workshop, which is designed to help you take the appropriate steps towards enhancing your overall security posture, and provides you with hands-on experience with these tools (and others).

Developments to the Security Landscape

Unlike the other two security threats that we have discussed so far, this security issue is actually a positive one. There are several emerging technologies that have been designed to mitigate risks for organizations, like yours, and keep your IT environment more protected (we’ve talked about a few of them in the paragraph above). Making sure that you are up to speed on the security landscape, including these emerging technologies, is a great way for your organization to know what threats are out there and know how to protect yourself from becoming a victim of them.

Here are a few ways you can stay abreast of what’s happening:

 

Who’s Affected by the Biggest Security Threats?

Security threats can affect any organization, regardless of size, and regardless of industry they’re in. You could be a one-person start-up, or a Fortune 500 company with hundreds of thousands of employees – if you’ve got data, it’s worth money to hackers.

“But I’m a small organization. I don’t have anything of value to steal. Surely I’m okay?”

Unfortunately, that’s not true. At the risk of sounding all ‘doom and gloom’, the fact of the matter is, every business needs to take the appropriate steps to protect themselves from these biggest security threats.

Data breaches and security incidents have wreaked havoc on many organizations, especially in 2017, with several breaches being reported and many organizations suffering financial losses. Dun & Bradstreet, Verizon, Equifax, Deloitte, Uber, Yahoo, eBay, and many other companies have reported data breaches in 2017, with the number of users affected totaling well into the billions. And it doesn’t just stop with these large corporations. As the recent ransomware attack on two Children’s Aid Societies in Ontario has shown, even smaller businesses, and non-profits are susceptible, and, in fact, small businesses provide cybercriminals a better opportunity to make a quick buck. After all, thieves are more likely to rob a house than a bank - even if the prize isn’t as big - because security isn’t usually as tight at a house.

In a nutshell, hackers want your data, especially the Personally Identifiable Information (like emails, birth dates, credit card numbers, social insurance numbers, etc.) that will help them to perform nefarious tasks.

This short, 12-minute video below talks about the cybersecurity landscape and what you can do to mitigate your risks against these biggest security threats and others. Take a look:


Get Started Today With a Cybersecurity Assessment

Not sure how to start protecting your data? Want to learn more about your organization’s individual risks? A Cybersecurity Assessment can help you get an overview of your cybersecurity infrastructure, which includes a detailed risk analysis, and recommendations on how to fix them. Throughout the assessment, you’ll get a better understanding of how to educate your employees on cybersecurity, what tools are out there and how you can implement them in your organization. Plus, you’ll also come away with a clear, written plan of what your priorities should be. Contact us today to begin your cybersecurity assessment.

 

Published by Stephanie Baskerville July 10, 2018