As technology advances, so do the threats to technology. The landscape of cybersecurity threats are ever-evolving. Read on to learn more about different types of cybersecurity threats and what your organization should be doing to prevent them.
Malware Attacks
Malware attacks (malicious software) are a very common type of cybersecurity threat. Malicious software is inclusive to threats like viruses, worms, spyware, trojans, and ransomware. This kind of attack gets into a system, collects sensitive information, manipulates access to certain networks, and can delete data or shut down your system entirely. Malware attacks are usually deployed through link clicks from an unsafe website or email.
Social Engineering Attacks
Social engineering attacks are a type of cybersecurity threat that help the malware attack function. In social engineering attacks, the user provides sensitive information or installs the malware unknowingly on their device. In doing so, this gives the malware attack the avenue to actually open and start accessing your data. A few common types of social engineering attacks include phishing, pretexting, baiting, vishing, smishing, piggybacking, and tailgating. Phishing remains one of the most common cybersecurity threats.
Supply Chain Attacks
Supply chain attacks are a newer type of cybersecurity threat compared to malware and social engineering attacks. With supply chain attacks, attackers search for non-secure networks, systems, infrastructure, and coding. When they find a weakness, they are able to use these to change the build of your system and code and interject malicious content. Since these supply chain attacks are run through the applications of trusted vendors, it allows the malicious code to function and run the same way code should run. Common supply chain attacks include compromising the build tools, composing the code of signing procedures, malicious code sent as an automatic update, or malicious code pre-installed on physical devices.
Man-in-the-Middle Attack
A Man-in-the-Middle attack is a type of cybersecurity threat that involves intercepting the communication between user and application. An example of this is a fake Wi-Fi connection that looks real. Users may connect to this Wi-Fi connection and the Wi-Fi connection actually allows the attacker to monitor the activity of the users using that Wi-Fi, intercepting credit card information or login credentials to things you are doing online while connected to that Wi-Fi. Another example of this is email hijacking, where a fake email address poses as a legitimate business and convinces users to give up sensitive information or money to that email address.
Denial-of-Service Attack
A Denial-of-Service attack works to overload a system with a large volume of traffic. By doing this, it aims to prevent the system from functioning as it normally would. These kinds of attacks can involve multiple devices working together to target one system. They can overwhelm the system by flooding it with excess HTTP requests, sending a SYN request, or other using avenues.
Injection Attacks
A final cybersecurity threat, injection attacks, look to target points of vulnerabilities in systems to insert, or inject, malicious input into the code of the web application. By doing this, they are able to effectively rewrite the code, exposing sensitive information, aiding in a Denial-of-Service attack, or corrupting the entire system.
While no organization is ever completely safe from cybersecurity threats, there are actions you can take to keep your information as safe and secure as possible. Is your cloud secure? Experts on our team at acentauri digital are constantly working to ensure the security of your information in the cloud is a top priority. Contact us today to learn more about securing your cloud and staying safe from cybersecurity threats.
