Failure to keep up with complexity leaves businesses at ransomware risk
Increasingly businesses have data stored in hybrid- and multi-cloud environments, but a new report shows that this extra complexity could also be putting data at risk.
The report out today from Veritas Technologies found that only 36 percent of respondents say their security has kept pace with their IT complexity, underscoring the need for greater use of data protection solutions that can protect against ransomware across increasingly varied environments.
Getting real about ransomware [Q&A]
For every high-profile ransomware incident in the headlines, there are many more that never get reported. Particularly among small- and medium-sized businesses, often with small IT and cybersecurity teams, a ransomware attack can be an existential problem.
To understand how companies should respond when they discover they're in the grip of a ransomware threat actor, we spoke with Kurtis Minder, CEO and co-founder of GroupSense, which helps companies navigate through these attacks to get their businesses back online.
Hospitals and healthcare hit by global wave of ransomware
October has seen a 71 percent increase in ransomware attacks against the healthcare sector in the US compared to the previous month.
Elsewhere in the world, in EMEA, attacks increased by 36 percent and by 33 percent in the APAC region, according to research from Check Point.
Malware levels drop as attacks become more targeted
Overall malware levels have shown a 39 percent decline over the last quarter as attackers have switched to a more targeted approach.
The third quarter threat intelligence report from SonicWall Capture Labs records a 40 percent surge in global ransomware, a 19 percent increase in intrusion attempts and a 30 percent rise in IoT malware.
Beware the 'Windows Update' that can install malware, steal your personal information, and encrypt your PC
Emotet began life as a banking Trojan back in 2014 but has since evolved into something much worse -- a self-propagating platform that can deploy multiple exploits and spam campaigns.
The number one malware threat today, Emotet usually takes a break during the summer months while the developers behind it work to add new features and capabilities, and now it’s back with a new 'Windows Update' attachment.
Hackers turn to new tactics to make attacks more effective
Some nation-state cyber adversaries and notorious ransomware gangs are deploying an arsenal of new open-sourced tools, actively exploiting corporate email systems and using online extortion to scare victims into paying ransoms.
This is one of the findings of Accenture's latest Cyber Threatscape Report. Analysts have seen attackers using a combination of off-the-shelf tooling -- including 'living off the land' tools, shared hosting infrastructure and publicly developed exploit code -- and open source penetration testing tools to carry out cyberattacks and hide their tracks.
The impact and cost of ransomware in 2020
We reported earlier this week that ransomware attacks have increased dramatically in the last year and it's undoubtedly a growing problem.
In order to demonstrate just how big an issue it's become, Lumu, which helps businesses measure their compromise exposure, has produced an infographic detailing the cost and extent of ransomware.
Ransomware attacks rocket over the last quarter
In the last three months ransomware attacks have grown by a global average of 50 percent compared to the first half of 2020.
The figures look even bleaker for individual countries, with attacks up by by 98 percent in the US, 80 percent in the UK, 145 percent in Germany, 36 percent in France and 160 percent in Spain.
Free tool helps security professionals improve ransomware defenses
Ransomware is a persistent problem, with cybercriminals always looking for new ways to evade detection and infect systems. Attacks have increased 20 percent in the first half of this year.
Endpoint detection and response company Nyotron is launching a new, free online tool called Ransomwiz that allows allows security professionals to check their defenses by generating actual ransomware samples using a variety of real-world attack techniques.
Ransomware operators work together to maximize effectiveness of attacks
The numerous challenges of 2020 have proved to be fertile ground for ransomware attacks, with the number up by nine percent compared to the first quarter and by 59 percent compared to the second quarter of 2019.
The latest Threatscape report from Positive Technologies shows that 16 percent of phishing attacks took advantage of COVID-19 concerns, and there is also evidence that ransomware operators have started cooperating with each other.
Garmin confirms a ransomware attack took its systems offline
As expected, Garmin has confirmed that the ongoing outage that affected many of sport and fitness firm's services was the result of a cyberattack.
In a brief statement the company explains that the attack encrypted some of its systems on July 23, and then goes on to explain what happened and what was affected:
Malware attacks down as ransomware increases
The latest Cyber Threat Report from SonicWall shows a 24 percent drop in malware attacks worldwide, while there’s been a 20 percent jump in ransomware globally and a 109 percent spike in the US.
There's also been a 176 percent increase in malicious Microsoft Office file types and a 50 percent rise in IoT malware attacks as cybercriminals seek to use devices as a backdoor to business networks via home workers.
Security professionals lack visibility into top threats
According to a new report, 89 percent of security professionals are most concerned about phishing, web and ransomware attacks, but only 48 percent confirm that they have continuous visibility into these risk areas.
The 2020 Cybersecurity 360 Report from Balbix also shows 64 percent of organizations are only, at best, somewhat confident in their security posture, and that the lack of visibility into security is the primary concern for organizations.
Cyber ransom demands up 200 percent in 2019
Requested amounts in ransomware attacks rose nearly 200 percent from 2018 to 2019, averaging $115,123 per attack last year.
A report from incident response, risk management and digital forensics firm Crypsis Group reveals that threat actors across a range of cyberattack types have significantly escalated their tactical approaches, becoming more targeted, conducting victim research and employing techniques that enable them to be more successful and extract higher payouts for their efforts.
How ransomware attacks are making the most of the COVID-19 crisis [Q&A]
Ransomware is a business that's thriving in the current climate, but what's behind this and what wider problems do attacks create for businesses?
We had a socially-distanced chat with Chris Morales, head of security analytics at network detection and response specialist Vectra to find out more.
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