“Chance favors only the prepared mind.”

Louis Pasteur

TOP 10 CYBERSECURITY THREATS

1.) RANSOMWARE

Research conducted by Cybersecurity Ventures has led to its estimation that ransomware damages will cost the world more than $8 billion in 2018.

Definition: A piece of software that locks out your computer until you pay a small ransom to have it unlocked.

2.) EMAIL PHISHING

Average cost to small to mid-size business is $1.5 Million

An email that is sent with a link or attachment that will infect your computer with malware.  The link could also redirect you to a site that seems legitimate, but it is just a trap to capture your information.

3.) PASSWORD MINING

Many people use the same password, or some variation of the same password for all their cyber needs.  If this password is common, such as P@ssw0rd!; the user’s entire cyber footprint is at risk.

4.) SOCIAL ENGINEERING

Annualized Cost by Attack Type
Malware: $2.4 million
Phishing and social engineering: $1.3 million
Ransomware: $533,000

A method used to trick a victim into giving up personal or secret information.  For example, if someone from a bank calls, and asks for banking information to verify fraudulent activity.  Banks will never call and ask for banking information such as account numbers.  Each bank has a secure way of communicating with members when fraudulent charges are suspected.

5.) SMART DEVICE DATA MINING

It is estimated that 43% of smartphones/tablets do not have passwords.  This allows anyone to access and exploit personal private data.  Exploits can even be hidden in legitimate applications downloaded to the smartphone.

6.) CHIP AND PIN CARDS

Cards that contain the new smart chips are vulnerable to “Card-not-present” fraud that is exploited online.  This type of fraud has been seen in other countries that use this technology.

7.) VIRUS/MALWARE BACKDOOR ACCESS

Certain sophisticated malware and virus software have shown they have the ability to install a backdoor onto a computer without alerting the antivirus software.  This will allow a hacker to gain remote access to a computer and extract any data that is valuable. 

8.) SOCIAL MEDIA STALKING

Cyber criminals have been using social media to track their victim’s movements in order to exploit their vulnerabilities.  If for example, you tweet that you are heading to Florida with the whole family, then the criminal following you knows that your home is empty. 

9.) CHANGED OR MANIPULATED DATA

Data can be changed easily by the user of the data.  The number of incidents of outside users manipulating and changing data is on the rise.

10.) FILE SHARING SOFTWARE

Software that allows you to access video or music content across the globe can create a huge opportunity for a hacker to gain access to more than just your “piano playing cat” videos.