Threat actors
Update Your Security Strategy Based on Key Information Learned About Threat Actors, Advises Netskope
The reality of the cyber threats posed today is that many threat actors are not rogue operators acting on their own but are, instead, working as part of sophisticated and organised groups, collaborating with other groups within a wider ecosystem of specialists. These groups build significant financial resources over time, derived from the proceeds of commercially-driven attacks, or gathered as payment from states sponsoring or directly commissioning their activities. This is according to Yaroslav Rosomakho, Field CTO of Netskope, a global cybersecurity leader which is redefining cloud, data, and network security to help organisations apply Zero Trust principles to protect data. He explains: “Threat actors use these resources to improve their subsequent attacks, paying for infrastructure or...
31.5 Million Cyberthreats Targeted SA Users in the First Half of 2021
Image sourced from Feed Navigator. The increase in cyberthreats recorded by global internet security firm Kaspersky in the first half of this year across South Africa amounted to 31.5 million. “Threats can be categorised as criminal (80% of attacks), targeted (19.9%), and advanced (0.01%). The advanced grouping is significantly more sophisticated and feature increased investment from attack groups. Unfortunately, both criminal and targeted threat vectors learn from the advanced category to enhance their own attack techniques,” says Amin Hasbini, Head of Research Centre, Global Research & Analysis Team, Middle East, Turkey and Africa at Kaspersky. Attacks Are Becoming More Sophisticated Hasbini says that the current trends show that attackers around the world are embracing more sophisti...
‘No Honour Among Thieves’: Don’t Pay the Bad Guys say Rubrik & Microsoft
Image sourced from Mohamed Hasan – Pixabay. There is good news for companies who wish to keep their data safe, and who are opposed to paying hackers ransom money in order to have critical data returned in the event of a hack. This input comes in the recent announcement that global giant Microsoft, the American multinational technology corporation, is investing in cloud data management company Rubrik. “The two companies will combine on products that will help customers hit by ransomware to recover their critical data without paying the ransom,” says Risna Steenkamp, General Manager: ESM Division at Networks Unlimited, which distributes Rubrik throughout Africa. “Data is one of a company’s most valuable resources, and it is critical that a business should not feel forced to ...
WhatsApp Overwhelmingly Popular for Phishing Scammers, According to Kaspersky
Anonymised data, voluntarily provided by Kaspersky Internet Security for Android users, has shown which messenger apps are the most popular among phishing scammers. The biggest share of detected malicious links between December 2020 and May 2021 were overwhelmingly sent via WhatsApp (84.9%), followed by Telegram (5.7%). “Percentage of Phishing Detections by Messanger App.” Courtesy of Kaspersky. Viber is in third place with a share of 4.9% and Hangouts has less than 1%. Countries experiencing the highest number of phishing attacks were Russia (46%), Brazil (15%) and India (7%). Globally, 480 detections were recorded per day. Messenger Apps Surge in Popularity According to research, messenger apps outstripped social networks by 20% in 2020, in terms of popularity among users, and ...
Awareness and Training Are Key in Defending Your Company from Blended Cyber-Threats
Image sourced from Finance Times. While blended cybersecurity threats are not new, they are fairly sophisticated and multi-staged in nature, meaning that they are difficult to protect against and can pose a considerable threat to organisations’ IT environments. A blended threat typically uses and exploits multiple vulnerabilities in an attack chain, says Brian Pinnock, Senior Director of Sales Engineering (EMEA) at Mimecast, adding that the severity of a blended threat will depend on the specific vulnerabilities that are targeted. “For example, a threat actor or cybercriminal will launch a phishing campaign against an organisation by sending emails with infected links that redirect to malicious websites. When a user clicks on these links, they could download a piece of malware like a Troja...
Recent Increases in Cyberattacks Could Be Due to Leaked Cyber “Superweapons”
Sourced from Forbes Check Point Research (CPR), the Threat Intelligence arm of Check Point Software Technologies Ltd., a leading provider of cybersecurity solutions globally, warns of a further increase in cyberattacks and thinks it could be partly down to major powers leaking, what they refer to as, ‘cyber superweapons’. “We have long warned that organisations of all sizes are being bombarded by a global fifth generation of cyber threats (Gen V). These are multi-vector cyber threats that can cause fatal damage and irreparable harm to the reputation of the compromised company,” said Pankaj Bhula, Regional Spokesperson at Check Point Software. “However, most companies are only secured against what we call third-generation threats (Gen III), which are threats that we’ve known about since the...
Inside the Mind of Cybercriminals – How Threat Actors Think
Cybercriminals come in many different flavours, but the majority of them are in it for one thing: financial pay-off. They want the money that comes with offering their tools or services, selling stolen data, extortion like ransomware or plain fraud. And they all have one thing in common – your organisation is on their radar. This is why, says Anna Collard, SVP Content Strategy and Evangelist at KnowBe4 Africa, it is critical to understand how cyber criminals operate, the tools they use and the approaches they take to embed robust security within the organisation. “With ransomware going rampant and victim organisations paying up to millions of U.S. dollars to the extortionists, this problem is just going to get worse. The U.S. government recently announced that ransomware is a national cybe...
