Content Category: Attack Vectors
An “attack vector” is a method or pathway used by a hacker or malicious software to gain unauthorized access to a system.
The Threat of Corporate Cybercrime During the Holiday Season
As the year draws to a close, businesses worldwide gear up for the bustling holiday season. However, while companies focus on closing out their fiscal years, managing holiday promotions, or preparing for reduced staff levels, cybercriminals are gearing up for their own end-of-year surge. The holiday season, including New Year’s celebrations, presents a unique and lucrative opportunity for malicious actors to exploit vulnerabilities in corporate cybersecurity defenses.
Common Cybercrime Attack Vectors
Cybercrime is a sophisticated global threat, if not pandemic, with corporations and government entities frequently in the crosshairs of malicious actors. The consequences of these attacks can range from financial losses and operational disruptions to reputational damage and national security risks. To effectively combat these threats, it is essential to understand the most common attack vectors used by cybercriminals.
The Importance of Defense in Depth: Lessons from the Recent CrowdStrike Outage
In the world of cybersecurity, even the most trusted tools can sometimes fail. This was underscored recently when CrowdStrike, an extremely well regarded cybersecurity company, inadvertently pushed a software update that impacted their customer’s systems and security services. While such incidents are rare, they serve as a reminder that no single piece of hardware or software is infallible. The reality is that failures, whether it be system outages or missed threat identifications, though infrequent, are an inevitable aspect of cyber defense technology.
Yearly Intel Trend Review
RedSense is excited to present our first “Yearly Intel Trend Review” for 2023! This is a summary review taken from our year-long project: The Ransomware APT White Paper—a 200-page cumulative research covering our five-year insights into ten top-tier ransomware groups serving as the backbone of today’s ransomware economy. The complete White Paper will be available for all RedSense customers in January 2024.
Cybercriminals Target Your Holiday Cheer
There is an increase in cybercrime around Christmas and New Year that can be attributed to the holiday season’s unique online behaviors and opportunities that attract cybercriminals. During this period, there’s a surge in online shopping as people rush to buy gifts, often leading to a relaxed approach to clicking links and making transactions. This frenzy makes it easier for scammers to create fake websites or send phishing emails and smishing (SMS phishing) messages that mimic popular retailers or special holiday deals, thus capturing credit card details and personal information.
Don’t Trust Your Ears
Vishing, a blend of “voice” and “phishing,” is a type of social engineering attack where scammers use phone calls to trick individuals into disclosing sensitive information. This technique can be particularly effective when the scammer impersonates a trusted authority, such as an IT support or service desk professional.
Your Phone May Be Lying to You
Smishing, a portmanteau of “SMS” and “phishing,” is a type of cyber attack where scammers use text messages to trick recipients into divulging personal information, financial details, or security credentials. Unlike traditional phishing which primarily uses emails, smishing exploits our reliance on smartphones, the generally weakness of SMS security filters, and the perception that text messages are more trustworthy than emails.
Artificial Intelligence in Cybersecurity
The greatest irony of current technology is that threat actors around the world are using artificial intelligence to more convincingly impersonate humans. That’s right, ChatGPT – a machine! – is enabling malicious activity like email phishing attacks. One might wonder what commentary Alan Turing would offer on this development.