Ransomware is a flourishing IT threat, and one that can cost organizations thousands of dollars in lost data, ransomware repayments and security breaches. According to Marcin Kleczynski, the CEO of cybersecurity company Malwarebytes, "In the last six to 12 months, [ransomware] has just gone so aggressively to the business environment. We see companies from 25 people all the way to 250,000 people getting hit with ransomware."
Surely you’ve seen rampant news reports of malware breaches and incidents of cyber hacking at enterprises around the world. From hospital hackings to financial services heists, digital criminal activity is a very real threat in today’s business climate. Read on for the details your enterprise needs to know about malware, in addition to three tips to protect your organization.
If your organization is considering a move to cloud computing, but you are worried about signing up for the proper services for your company, consider test driving the offerings before you make the switch. A well-researched and properly planned cloud deployment is the best strategy for companies seeking to take advantage of this new technology to take, but IT pros may be concerned about potential speed bumps and setbacks.
The concept of “software-defined” is not new, in fact we’ve been replacing hardware with software for a long time. Think about the alarm clock you used in the 90’s. If you wanted to set your alarm clock for 30 minutes earlier than usual you had to rotate through 23 and a half hours to set your new time. But that was normal. Fast-forward to now and your alarm can be turned on, off, or adjusted with a click of a button – right on your mobile device – replacing hardware with a software enabled device.
At least once a year, you can find a report on the web about what the most common passwords are based upon leaked data. Think of these lists as the worst passwords you can ever use. Typically, 123456 and password top the list. Coming up the path of popularity are passwords 123456 and 123456789, as people are required to enter in longer passwords. Need a mix of letters and numbers? You might want to avoid abc123 and trustno1, among many others. Nowadays, a password security alone isn’t sufficient to lock anything down. How best can you secure your system to keep the bad guys out?
Did you know that your data could be compromised at this moment, even if none of your security measures have sounded an alarm? As companies across the nation reported data breaches throughout the past few years, one commonality was noted: in most breaches, the data was compromised for weeks or even months before anyone noticed. When you couple that fact with some of the expectations for data security in the coming years, you realize that both internal and external security in most organizations has to evolve if it’s going to do any good.
Managing internal access to data and software has always been a challenge for technical and security departments. In the past, security was often managed physically; workers couldn’t access what they couldn’t physically get to. Today, cloud computing and the need for employees of all levels to access data from disparate locations makes physical controls outdated in most industries. Instead, organizations are turning to a variety of cloud, software, and hardware-based security solutions, some of which are less effective than others.
An enormous challenge for technical and security departments within any organization is creating secure networks, apps, and servers without making access so difficult that legitimate production is impacted. This is true whether you are working with in-house employee-based systems or customer-facing solutions such as web portals or online account management. The consequences for not securing information are huge, ranging from federal or state sanctions to loss of customers or customer trust. At the same time, results of the wrong type of security or unnecessary security might include loss of productivity, inability to make deadlines or complete work, poor employee morale, and loss of revenues. Data protection is key, but how can you ensure you have the right solutions in place?
