Ransomware, Email Scams and IoT Mining - Oh My! These are your 2018 Cyber-Security Predictions

With high profile cyber-attacks and data breaches such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Panera and even the City of Atlanta on the rise, businesses are starting to realize that these attacks are not going away and will probably continue to get worse without proper security measures. Small Business owners will say “We’re not important enough to be the target of a cyber-attack.” They are wrong; over 60% of cyber breaches targeted small businesses in 2016, and that percentage continues to grow. Now in 2018, we are watching to see what new attacks are on the rise and what to look out for to preserve the security of your business. Read below about what attacks you can expect to be on the rise this year.  

Ransomware

  • If you heard about the City of Atlanta ransomware attack then you know how real this threat is.

  • Security Professionals predict that we will see ransomware attacks targeted towards more critical systems and industries.

  • 94% of these attacks start through and are spread via email. Learn how to train your team to identify these email scams here.

IoT (Internet of Things)

  • Connected devices are generally more vulnerable to attacks because they are hard to patch for updates and made with little to no internal security.

  • Change the default password on these devices for a quick security upgrade.

  • Most often these devices are not being hacked for data, but instead to use them for cryptocurrency mining, i.e. using the energy from your device to mine for digital currency.

Business Email Scams

  • An increase in business email scams are expected to increase this year as well, these may include CEO fraud, phishing scams, and W-2 fraud.

  • Raise awareness of these scams and train your employees how to identify an email scam so they don’t become victims, or worse, spread it within your organization.

These are the top threats predicted to be the most active in 2018. Others, such as Cyber propaganda (fake news) and business application vulnerabilities will continue to be exploited by cyber criminals. A proactive security strategy, proper staff education and staying up-to-date on new threats as they are discovered or exploited is key to maintaining the integrity of your Business’s data and keeping both employee and customer information secure.

Infotect Web Admin