Why your company’s business partners may be its weakest link By now, most companies have gotten the message that failure to implement cybersecurity best practices exposes their enterprise to alarming risks. But what many don’t realize is that their attack surface may be larger than they think – and the weakest link may exist outside their organization with their business partners. From cloud providers to professional service firms to outside software and hardware, almost every business relies on third-party vendors to support core functions – and it’s common for many of these vendors to
What Does the New California Consumer Privacy Act Mean for Your Business?
Stiff penalties await companies that fail to protect consumer data 2018 may go down in history as the year of data privacy. A mere month after the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) became enforceable in May – transforming the way commerce is managed worldwide – California followed suit with the Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). The CCPA’s sweeping privacy requirements are groundbreaking in the United States and not surprising from California, the center of the U.S. tech industry and traditionally the pacesetter for tech law. With a compliance deadline of January 2020,
6 Signs You’ve Been Hit with an APT Attack
Spot the traces of these under-the-radar threats before they steal your company’s secrets Gone are the days when cybercriminals were the biggest thing keeping IT leaders up at night. A new threat is emerging from hackers who are viewed as heroes instead of criminals within their countries, allowing them to operate freely without any fear of punishment and tremendous resources behind them. Advanced persistent threats (APTs) are executed by highly-organized, state-sponsored groups with deep technical skills who patiently steal data, plant destructive code or spy on systems over an extended
Why the Future of Malware is Fileless
A new kind of malware is giving hackers an edge in the war on cybercrime Fileless malware attacks are on the rise – soaring a whopping 94 percent in the first half of 2018 – and cybersecurity experts are warning that this hard-to-detect infection method is trailblazing a whole new category of cyber-attacks that represents a stealthier future for malware. Typically, malware relies on files that install malicious software onto a machine’s hard disk. Fileless attacks – also known as zero footprint, macro, or non-malware attacks – give hackers an edge against most security tools and enterprise
Beating the Cybersecurity Challenge of BYOD
9 tips for protecting your business from the dangers posed by personal devices Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) is a workplace trend that’s here to stay – and it’s easy to see why. From the reduction of equipment costs for businesses to convenience and flexibility for employees, nearly 75 percent of companies are allowing their staff to use their own laptops, tablets, and mobile devices for work, according to a Sapho report. Forbes asserts that BYOD policies save companies $350 per employee per year while increasing productivity by 34 percent. They also foster employee satisfaction, as 78
Don’t Underestimate the Growing Threat of Cyber-Physical Attacks
The threat of physical damage to company assets – or worse, people – must be taken seriously Data breaches, financial losses, business interruptions, reputational harm – mitigating these alarming risks is the focus of traditional cybersecurity strategies. But while it may sound like science fiction, a new nightmare scenario is emerging that’s keeping many IT leaders up at night. Cyber-attacks that cause physical damage to people or property is a real threat that many cybersecurity experts fear is being badly underestimated by companies. Even if cyber-attacks don't start out with destructive
Why the Internet of Things (IoT) May be Ransomware’s Next Target
Attacks on the IoT could be more serious than you think It’s no newsflash that the Internet of Things (IoT) is seeping into every aspect of our lives. It’s wearable, portable, and even implantable, transforming physical objects (and people) into a connected universe that’s changing the way we live and work. Gartner forecasts that there will be 20.4 billion IoT devices deployed by 2020. And some cybersecurity experts fear that’s setting the stage for a nightmarish scenario of smart devices as the next target of ransomware. In its Threat Horizon 2019 report, the Information Security Forum
What Does the SEC’s Recent Cybersecurity Guidance Mean for Your Business?
Last year’s SEC statement isn't legally binding, but here’s why public companies must comply As news of high-profile data breaches continuously grabs headlines, boardrooms nationwide are scrambling to understand the implications of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) robust cybersecurity guidance. Issued on Feb. 21, 2018, the long-awaited guidance adds specific expectations for disclosure controls and incident response procedures for companies listed on U.S. stock exchanges. It marks a notable change from the previous SEC guideline issued in 2011 by requiring companies to
Cybercrime: The Law’s Next Challenge
Old laws and a lack of regulation threaten to drastically change the legal landscape Once the sole province of computer experts and thrillers at the multiplex, cybersecurity is now a fact of daily life for most individuals and companies. It has changed the way we protect our personal information, the way we think about privacy, and the relationship between law and technology. Lawmakers, attorneys, and the courts are all sailing in uncharted waters as they muddle through antiquated laws, unclear regulations, and digital threats of ever-increasing ferocity and sophistication. Perhaps the most
The Latest and Continuing Threats in the Global Cyber War
Cryptojacking. Software subversion. Data manipulation. Ransomware. What are the threats that you need to look out for? It’s hard to believe that there are still so many organizations unaware of or unprepared for cyberattacks, given the modern threat environment. Over 85% of companies have reported a breach in recent years yet only 39% have a strategy for cyber defense. We’d recommend those businesses read our previous blogs, including one that reveals how to think like a hacker. Sooner or later, neglecting cybersecurity will come with a price tag. The global average cost for a data breach is