Notes

20 Myths About Cybersecurity Risk: Debunked
Cybersecurity Risk Management - How to Manage Third-Party Risks

It's not a day without hearing about data breaches that expose hundreds of thousands or millions of private details of individuals. These data breaches are typically caused by third-party partners, such as a vendor who experiences a system malfunction.

Analyzing cyber risk begins with precise information about your threat landscape. This helps you decide which threats need immediate attention.

State-sponsored Attacks

Cyberattacks from nation-states can cause more damage than any other type of attack. Attackers from nation-states are usually well-resourced and have sophisticated hacking techniques, which makes it difficult to recognize them or fight them. They can take sensitive information and disrupt business services. In addition, they can cause more damage over time through targeting the supply chain and damaging third-party suppliers.

The average cost of a national-state attack is estimated at $1.6 million. Nine in 10 companies believe they have been a victim of an attack by a nation-state. With cyberespionage gaining popularity among threat actors from nations-states it's more crucial than ever before for businesses to have a solid security program in place.

Cyberattacks by states can take a variety forms, from stealing intellectual property to ransomware or a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack. They are executed by cybercriminal organizations, government agencies which are backed by states, freelancers hired to carry out a nationalist operation, or even criminal hackers who target the general public.

Stuxnet was a game changer for cyberattacks. It allowed states to weaponize malware against their enemies. Since then, cyberattacks have been utilized by states to accomplish the military, political and economic goals.

In recent years, there has been a significant increase in the number of government-sponsored attacks and the level of sophistication of these attacks. Sandworm is a group that is backed by the Russian government has targeted both customers and businesses with DDoS attacks. This is in contrast to traditional criminal syndicates, which are motivated by financial gain and are more likely to target businesses that are owned by consumers.

Therefore, responding to a threat from a state-sponsored actor requires extensive coordination with multiple government agencies. This is a major difference from the "grandfather's cyberattack" when a company could submit an Internet Crime Complaint Center Report (IC3) to the FBI but not need to conduct a coordinated response with the FBI. In addition to the greater degree of coordination responding to a nation state attack also requires coordination with foreign governments, which can be particularly difficult and time-consuming.


Smart Devices

Cyber attacks are increasing in frequency as more devices connect to the Internet. This increased attack surface could pose security risks to both companies and consumers. Hackers, for instance, exploit smart devices to steal data or compromise networks. This is particularly true when these devices aren't adequately protected and secured.

Smart devices are particularly appealing to hackers as they can be used to gain an abundance of information about people or businesses. For example, voice controlled assistants such as Alexa and Google Home can learn a amount about their users by the commands they are given. They can also gather data about the layout of users' homes and other personal information. These devices are also used as gateways to other IoT devices such as smart lighting, security cameras, and refrigerators.

If hackers can get access to these devices, they could cause serious harm to individuals and businesses. They could make use of them to commit a variety of crimes, such as fraud or identity theft. Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks and malicious software attacks. Additionally, they can hack into vehicles to alter GPS locations, disable safety features and even cause physical injury to passengers and drivers.

There are ways to minimize the damage caused by smart devices. For instance users can alter the default passwords that are used on their devices to prevent attackers from easily locating them and enable two-factor authentication. It is also essential to upgrade the firmware on routers and IoT devices frequently. Local storage, instead of the cloud, can reduce the chance of an attacker when transferring and storage of data from or to these devices.

It is essential to conduct research to better understand the digital damage and the best ways to mitigate them. Research should be focused on finding technological solutions that can mitigate the harms triggered by IoT. Additionally, they should investigate other possible harms, such as cyberstalking, or increased power imbalances between household members.

Human Error

Human error is a frequent factor that contributes to cyberattacks and data breaches. It can be anything from downloading malware to leaving an organization's network open for attack. empyrean group of these errors can be avoided by establishing and enforcing strong security controls. For instance, an employee might click on an attachment that is malicious in a phishing campaign or a storage configuration error could expose sensitive data.

Additionally, a user could disable a security feature in their system without noticing that they're doing this. This is a common error that leaves software vulnerable to attacks from ransomware and malware. According to IBM the majority of security breaches are caused by human error. It's crucial to understand the types of mistakes that can cause a cyber breach and take the necessary steps to minimize them.

Cyberattacks are committed for a wide range of reasons, including hacking activism, financial fraud, to obtain personal information, deny service, or disrupt critical infrastructure and essential services of a government agency or an organization. They are typically perpetrated by state-sponsored actors, third-party vendors or hacker collectives.

The threat landscape is always evolving and complex. Organizations should therefore regularly review their risk profiles and revisit security strategies to keep up with the most recent threats. The good news is that the most advanced technologies can help reduce the risk of a cyberattack and improve an organisation's security posture.

However, it's important to keep in mind that no technology can shield an organisation from every potential threat. Therefore, it is essential to devise a comprehensive cyber security strategy that is based on the different layers of risk in an organisation's ecosystem. It is also essential to conduct regular risk assessments instead of relying solely on point-in time assessments, which are often in error or missed. A thorough assessment of the security risks of an organization will enable an efficient mitigation of these risks and will ensure the compliance of industry standards. This can ultimately prevent costly data breaches and other security incidents from negatively damaging a business's reputation, operations and finances. A successful cybersecurity strategy should incorporate the following elements:

Third-Party Vendors

Every business depends on third-party vendors - that is, businesses outside the company that provide services, products and/or software. These vendors typically have access to sensitive data such as client data, financials, or network resources. When these companies aren't secure, their vulnerability can become an entry point into the business's system. This is the reason why cybersecurity risk management teams have started to go to the extremes to ensure that third-party risks are vetted and controlled.

This risk is increasing as cloud computing and remote working become more popular. A recent study conducted by security analytics firm BlueVoyant revealed that 97% of companies which were surveyed suffered from supply chain vulnerabilities. privacy-first alternative means that any disruption to a vendor, even one with a small part of the business's supply chain - could trigger a domino effect that threatens the entire operation of the business.

Many organizations have taken the initiative to create a process which accepts new vendors from third parties and requires them to sign to specific service level agreements that define the standards to which they are held in their relationship with the organization. empyrean corporation should also include documentation of the ways in which weaknesses of the vendor are assessed and followed up with and corrected promptly.

Another way to protect your business against third-party risk is by using an access management system that requires two-factor authentication in order to gain access into the system. This prevents attackers gaining access to your network easily by stealing employee credentials.

Lastly, make sure your third-party vendors are using the most recent versions of their software. This will ensure that they haven't introduced any unintentional flaws into their source code. Many times, these flaws go undetected and can be used as a basis for more prominent attacks.

In the end, third party risk is a constant threat to any business. The strategies listed above can help reduce these threats. However, the most effective way for you to minimize your third-party risks is by constant monitoring. This is the only method to fully comprehend the cybersecurity posture of your third party and quickly identify the potential threats.

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