Cybersecurity: Friend or Fiend?

We all know about the horrors of cybercrime: the hacked accounts, stolen identities, malware, viruses, and feeling unsafe using your own devices, not knowing the gravity of the viruses and scammers we are exposed to with just one click. As we have slowly given in to the world of vast technology, it helps us bring immense peace, knowing we are safe in our own homes and offices because of the latest security cameras we just installed and by using password-protected devices and top-of-the-line technology, but the real question is. "Are we really safe?"

What is Cybersecurity?

Cybersecurity is and should be the utmost important priority for every organization and individual. It’s important to protect all types of data, including sensitive personal information like your Social Security number or medical records; PII such as credit card numbers with shopping cart purchases online; PHI when it comes to patient care/ Personally Controlled Medical Device to ensure that your personal data can not be hacked and used against you. Cybersecurity is an umbrella term for all the precautions you take to protect yourself from cybercrime. It includes the collective methods, technologies, and processes to help protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of computer systems, networks, and data, against cyber-attacks or unauthorized access.

What is The Importance of Cybersecurity in Today’s World, and Why is Cybersecurity Important?

A steady rise in cybercrime highlights the flaws in devices and services we've come to depend on. This concern forces us to ask what cyber security is, why it's essential, and what to learn about it. Cybersecurity is a way to protect all your devices that are connected to the internet. It is also known as computer security or information security. Cybersecurity protects information risks that include unauthorized access, use, disclosure, interception, or destruction of data. This data can include but is not limited to, the confidential information of businesses or individual users.

In today's world, cybersecurity plays an important role in our lives. It has become a necessity more than a need. With the proliferation of devices and the increased connectivity of our world, cybersecurity has become a critical concern for individuals, businesses, and governments alike. Hackers are constantly finding new ways to exploit vulnerabilities and extract the information while the stakes are only getting higher.

Just consider the largest Equifax cybercrime breach, which exposed the personal data of 147.9 million Americans along with 15.2 million British citizens and about 19,000 Canadians. In cases like this, cybersecurity is essential for protecting our most sensitive information. While no one is immune to cyber attacks, there are steps we can all take to improve our cybersecurity and reduce the chances of becoming a victim and be alert and knowledgeable enough to prevent a cyberattack from happening. This includes adopting strong security measures, being aware of the latest threats, and knowing what to do if an attack does occur.

Cybersecurity is Typically Divided Into a Few Common Categories.

Network Security involves the practice of securing a computer network from intruders, whether it be targeted attackers or opportunistic malware. Compromising one's own system can have damaging consequences for an organization as well as individuals.
Application Security is a critical issue for any organization. A compromised app can give hackers direct entry points into your sensitive information. To ensure the security of your data, it is important to design and build your apps from scratch rather than incorporating existing code without any changes or updates to its functionality. This will help avoid introducing vulnerabilities that could be exploited by hackers.
Information Security is the practice of protecting data from integrity and privacy via encryption, authentication, and traffic analytics. Information Security protects both stored information as well as transit communications to ensure that neither one falls prey to offline cyberattacks.
Operational Security is about protecting the data that lies at your company's fingertips. It includes everything from who has access to it, where they're able to store or share files with others on their network - even what type of information can be accessed by whom.
Disaster Recovery ensures that an organization can continue operating in the event of a cyber-security incident or any other significant disruption. The policies dictate how they restore their operations, returning it back to at least Maine levels as before such events occurred; this way, you're not only able but well prepared!
End-User Education The most unpredictable factor in cyber-security is people. Anyone can introduce a virus by failing to follow good practices, which also affects entire organizations! Teaching users about how they should delete suspicious email attachments or not plug unknown USB drives into their computers makes for safer computing environments that will keep your company safe from costly data breaches.

What are Cyberattacks?

Cyber attacks are happening to everyone. Automated and aimed at exploiting common vulnerabilities rather than specific websites or organizations, cyber security is a must for every internet user today.

A cyberattack is a malicious act where criminals use computers to target other computers or networks. This can include disabling computers, stealing data, or using a compromised computer to launch further attacks. There are many ways that criminals can launch a cyberattack, including through malware, phishing, ransomware, and denial of service attacks, among others.

History of Cyberattacks

The first cybercrime can be dated back to 1989 when Robert Morris created a computer worm that replicated excessively and slowed down the early internet. The code Morris used made the worm behave this way, and it caused damages estimated at around $100,000 to $10,000,000. This event is known as the first DoS attack in history.

A recent case of a data breach on a streaming website called “Plex” occurred, and the company is encouraging users to reset their passwords to stronger ones. While changing passwords is merely a caution, not a solution to a data breach, the company is in the works of finding out more about this breach. While another large-scale cyberattack happened on Equifax in 2017.

How is a Data Breach Caused?

The Equifax data breach was caused by the company’s failure to update its servers with a security patch that had been released in March of 2017. The Apache Struts software they were using had been found to be vulnerable to a security exploit, and hackers had been trying to find websites that had failed to update Struts as early as March 10th to exploit them. This is just another example of how important it is for companies to keep their software up-to-date and to have protocols in place for installing patches as soon as they are released. It's also important for companies to have systems in place for detecting and responding to security incidents. Equifax clearly did not have these systems in place, and as a result, millions of people may have had their personal information compromised.

The cost of cyber security is increasing, with 50% coming from small businesses. Enterprises have an average rate of 130 breaches per year. These numbers may be even higher for larger organizations due to their size making them easier targets, not only to gain access but also to steal valuable information. Customer's credit card numbers or personal data can lead to dark paths, including identity theft.

Types of Cyber Threats

The first threat to cyber security and your privacy is cybercrime, which includes both individuals or a group of people who target systems for financial gain and those that engage in disruptive behavior. This form of crime has been on the rise over recent years as more people turn towards digital means of commerce due largely because it's easier than ever before; making transactions without leaving your house, paying your bills, sending and transferring money without having to stand in the bank lines for hours, and so many more user- friendly experiences. Additionally, there have been cases where criminals will use information extracted through traditional methods (i e., burglaries) alongside online ones, such as hacking email accounts - giving them access not only to physical goods but also to sensitive data stored within these platforms, including credit card numbers among other things.

The common types of security attacks are:

DDOS Attacks: Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks are a subclass of DoS. A DDoS is when multiple connected computers oversell resources on one site, making them not able to use what they have effectively.
Brute Force Attacks: Hacking is the pursuit of obtaining unauthorized access to observe, change or destroy data on a computer system. This can be done by guessing login credentials (i.e., password) as well as encryption keys used in electronic communication such that they allow one party to send messages/data while protecting its contents from being read by somebody else who doesn't have knowledge.
Advanced Persistent Threats: Advanced persistent threats are a stealthy, nation-state or sponsored group who gains unauthorized access and remains undetected for an extended period of time.

So, How Do We Avoid Being the Victim of Cybercrime?

Cybersecurity has never been more important, with the global cyber threat continuing to evolve at a rapid pace. The RiskBased Security report reveals that 799 billion records were exposed between January and September 2019 alone, more than double (112%) what was seen in 2018!

Taking Precautions

You can save yourself from the paranoia and the hassle by taking a few simple precautions. Keep your data safe and secure online and avoid becoming the victim of cybercrime. Make cybersecurity your friend! It could be one of the best decisions you ever make. What many people don't realize is that cybersecurity measures can actually help protect you from threats and vulnerabilities.

Firewalls, intrusion detection and prevention systems, encryptions, and data loss prevention solutions can help you prevent a possible cyber breach. cybersecurity threats can come from a variety of sources, including viruses, worms, Trojans, spyware, adware, malicious code, denial-of-service attacks, and intrusions.

Delete junk email messages without opening them.
Beware of scam emails, as they can put unprotected computers at risk.
Do not click on links you don’t recognize.
Make sure to check your bank transactions from time to time for any suspicious activities. Such passwords protect your devices from cybercrime.
Use unique and strong passwords: ensure that all devices are password protected.
Use both upper and lowercase letters in your password, including numbers and special characters, to create new passwords.
Institute two-factor authentication for all employees for businesses and on your personal devices for home use.
Regularly back up your data and Install antivirus software on all devices.
Educate employees and your family members on safe online behavior.

Being aware of the latest threats and knowing what to do if an attack does occur can save you from being the next victim.

Best Cybersecurity Practices at Your Organization

Remaining shielded from cyberattacks is difficult. It's challenging to keep up when cybercriminals are relentlessly searching for better approaches to uncover security gambles. There are a number of ways to strengthen cybersecurity at Corporate Level. Software organizations regularly give programming updates to 3 reasons: to add new highlights, fix known bugs, and redesign security. Continuously update to the most recent adaptation of your product to safeguard yourself from new or existing security weaknesses. In the event that an email looks dubious, don't open it since it very well may be a phishing trick. Obsolete PC equipment may not help the latest programming security updates. Make a point to utilize PC equipment that is more exceptional. On the off chance that you consistently share private data, you totally need to begin utilizing a protected record sharing arrangement. Customary email isn't intended for trading delicate archives, since, in such a case that the messages are captured, unapproved clients will approach your valuable information.

However long you're associated with the web, it's difficult to have total and all out security from malware. For a safer and privatized network, utilize a virtual confidential organization (VPN). It'll encode your association and safeguard your confidential data, even from your web access provider. Links can undoubtedly be veiled as something they're not so it's ideal to twofold check before you click on a hyperlink. On most programs, you can see the objective URL by floating over the connection. Do this to check joins before you click on them.

Devices can be hacked through Bluetooth and accordingly your confidential data can be taken. Assuming there's not a great explanation to have your Bluetooth on, turn it off! Cyber Security is ensuring your association's information is protected from assaults from both inward and outer troublemakers. It can envelop a group of innovations, cycles, designs, and practices used to safeguard organizations, PCs, projects, and information from unapproved access or harm. All the more explicitly, the Online protection and Foundation Security Organization (CISA) guards US framework against digital dangers. As a piece of the Division of Country Security, CISA is liable for safeguarding government organizations and basic foundation from assaults. At a mile-significant level, network safety experts are liable for safeguarding IT framework, edge gadgets, organizations, and information. More granularly, they are answerable for forestalling information breaks and observing and responding to assaults. A CISO, or boss data security official, is a senior-level leader who directs an association's data, digital, and innovation security. The CISO's liabilities incorporate creating, carrying out, and upholding security arrangements to safeguard basic information.

Conclusion

No one can deny the importance of cybersecurity in today's world. With cyber-attacks becoming more and more common, it is crucial that businesses and individuals take measures to protect their data and privacy. It is abundantly clear that cybercrime is a real and pressing issue. As technology advances, so does the ability of criminals to exploit it and use your own data against you. However, above mentioned are things we can do to protect ourselves and our businesses.

We hope you found this article helpful in understanding cybercrime and how to stay safe online. Please share this information with your fellow businesses, and don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or need help!

Contact us now to discuss how we can assist you in developing a solution to protect your organization from cyber threats. Our team of experts have extensive experience in the field of cybersecurity and are dedicated to helping businesses and individuals safeguard their sensitive information. You can also reach out to us via a Call. Explore what we’re about, and get an idea of the time and the development cost for your idea.