03 recurring cyber attacks and best security practices

Did you know that 60% of companies that suffer a cyber attack file for bankruptcy within six months?

All organizations, whatever their size, sector of activity or number of operations, should pay particular attention to their cybersecurity.

In recent years, there have been a number of cyber-attacks that have been regularly attempted or carried out.

Find out how they are carried out, and above all, why robust security practices are essential to defend your business against these imminent dangers.

Phishing – Spearphishing

According to the Verizon Security Report 2021, phishing was the cause of 36% of data breaches .

In 2023, phishing attacks continued to rise, with an increase of 47.2% over the previous year.

Phishing consists of sending you a fraudulent e-mail or SMS message that appears more realistic, usually containing clickable links.

Example: Your company receives a fraudulent e-mail claiming to be from your cloud service provider, requesting that you update your login details. Your employees disclose their credentials, giving attackers unauthorized access to company systems.

Ransomware

The SonicWall 2021 security report, revealed that ransomware attacks saw a significant increase of 62%.

Cybersecurity firm Record Future reports that the number of ransomware attacks rose from 2,581 in 2022 to 4,399 in 2023 .

Here, cybercriminals use malware to encrypt your files or computer system, making your data inaccessible.

Example : An employee opens an attachment infected with ransomware that spreads rapidly across the company network, encrypting critical files and demanding a ransom for their restoration.

Distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks

DDoS attacks have increased by 20% according to the NETSCOUT 2021 security report.

In 2022 these types of attack increased by 79% in the fourth quarter.

In the first quarter of 2023, a study revealed that 16% of organizations surveyed reported a ransomware DDoS attack.

Denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks are one of the most widespread types of cyberattack, consisting of making a resource unavailable to users.

These attacks occur when numerous compromised network devices, spread across the globe, flood the bandwidth of the targeted system.

Example : A company’s servers are overwhelmed by a massive flow of malicious traffic, making their services inaccessible to legitimate users.

Good security practices in the face of these frequent cyberattacks :

How to protect yourself against phishing

• • Check the sender’s address and attachments carefully before clicking.

• • If you’re suspicious, roll your mouse over the link to see the address it leads to, and assess its legitimacy.

• • Never reply to a suspicious e-mail. If in doubt, contact the sender via another channel.

• • If your e-mail provider allows it, activate double authentication to secure your access.

To protect yourself from ransomware

• • Make regular backups of critical data and store them offline to prevent them being encrypted in the event of an attack.

• • Regularly update operating systems, software and applications to plug known vulnerabilities.

• • Use robust security solutions, such as firewalls and antivirus software, to detect and block malware before it infects the system.

To prevent a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack

• • Implement DDoS filtering services to monitor and block malicious traffic before it reaches the corporate network.

• • Configure traffic thresholds and alert mechanisms to detect DDoS attacks early and take appropriate mitigation measures.

• • Spread the traffic load over several servers and use cloud computing services to resist volumetric attacks.

Did you know that a cyber attack occurs every 39 seconds worldwide? Follow these steps to manage your company’s cyber risks.

In addition, have Klivar audit your company’s initial IT security measures and benefit from recommendations for proactive, agile risk and compliance management.