We may think of 2020 as the year of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it is also being called the year of the digital pandemic. Industry observers say it was one of the worst years to date for cybersecurity, with estimates of a four-fold increase in ransomware attacks and a spike in phishing scams. The move to working from home and endless virtual interactions increased the potential for hackers to breach networks via unprotected endpoints, out-of-date security patches, and a myriad of other system vulnerabilities. Fraudulent emails aimed at remote workers increased from 12% of total emails sent to 60% throughout the year. COVID-19 clearly presented a bonanza for hackers.
While phishing scams usually involve individuals, the biggest data breaches of the year inevitably targeted large corporations (e.g. Estee Lauder) and entities, such as government agencies (e.g. European Medicines Agency). One source cites over 4000 attacks per day in 2020.
Big organisations have deep pockets to pay ransom demands and have a lot to lose in terms of reputation, consumer trust, and actual customer numbers if their data is compromised.
As recently as March of this year, computer manufacturer Acer suffered a ransomware attack, to the tune of $50 million – that’s R7 billion! According to the online information security news site Bleeping Computer, this is the largest known ransom to date. Furthermore, the company was given a tight deadline to make the payment, after which the ransom would double! Acer was hit by a group of hackers known as REvil, which has previously targeted celebrities such as Lady Gaga, leaking sensitive personal information. Even Donald Trump fell prey to REvil’s tactics.
It’s understandable that a pop star might not be up to speed on cybersecurity, but we would expect an electronics manufacturer to be impenetrable. We would also expect Microsoft to be immune to attack, but the software giant also experienced a major breach of security when some of its source code was hacked in a strike on SolarWinds, an IT solutions provider. NASA, Visa, Mastercard and other high-profile organisations were also implicated in the operation as clients of SolarWinds. On 15 April, the US government formally accused the Russian government of being behind the hacker group “Cozy Bear” and these attacks. (source: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/us-government-confirms-russian-svr-behind-the-solarwinds-hack/)
The threat of a cyberattack may feel overwhelming, but you CAN keep your network safe. However, you can’t do it alone. Hackers are experts, and you need experts on your side to keep ahead of them. With the most up-to-date resources at their disposal, a dedicated team of security professionals can identify breaches before they happen and reduce the likelihood of an attack. Then, if you suffer a breach, they act swiftly to reduce the impact through rapid detection, notification and response recommendations.
NEWORDER partners with Alert Logic, the leading global managed detection and response (MDR) provider, to give you the first line of defence against threats. Alert Logic deploys a proprietary managed detection and response platform. A team of vetted professionals continuously monitors network traffic and scans more than 140 billion log messages daily. This team is highly specialised, including security operations analysts, threat intelligence researchers, web application specialists, data scientists, implementation architects, security project managers and solutions specialists. Only the very largest companies can afford to employ a team of this calibre in-house. However proficient your IT department, for reliable protection against threats, you need dedicated cybersecurity experts on your side.
While the Alert Logic team comprises over 150 highly qualified professionals, they are not faceless. Every client has an MDR concierge, whose job it is to be a single point of contact and facilitate whatever you need. Your concierge not only gives you personal support but also hold accountability for your business. So you will never be “handed off”. You will also be assigned a named security operations analyst. This is a senior analyst in the Alert Logic Security Operations Centre (SOC), who will ensure you enjoy personalised protection and customised incident response plans.
This crack team is driven by data aggregated from thousands of customers, which gives them unique threat intelligence. But AI alone is not enough. The team uses human insight to prioritise threats, identify those that need closer attention, and provide remediation solutions that are suited to your business context.
Just as we’re not out of the woods yet when it comes to COVID-19, we need to remain hypervigilant against hackers. When the pandemic hit our shores a year ago, we feared it would create unprecedented opportunities for cybercriminals, with employees working from home in less secure environments and with multiple endpoints. We urged our customers…and everyone…to strengthen their cyber defences. Statistics show we were right to be worried.
We don’t see this situation changing in the near future. So protect your organisation from serious information security threats. Let NEWORDER and Alert Logic provide you with a scalable and reliable managed detection and response solution. Enjoy peace of mind.
