High Profile Organizations that Have Been Phished

Cyber Attack, Hacking, malware, Phishing, Phishing Email, Ransomware, Security, Security Threats, , , , , ,
02
Oct 2018

Phishing is now so prevalent and sophisticated that even the biggest organizations on the planet are likely to be duped by phishing scams.

Immunity from such attacks is a difficult privilege to secure, so any organization that wants to remain productive needs to understand the threats out there. While you would expect most phishing attacks to target smaller, less secure organizations, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Instead, many hackers are taking on high profile organizations due to the challenge on offer and the publicity that such attacks bring.

Understanding how these businesses have been phished is crucial as it helps you to understand exactly why you need good security. To provide you with a foundation of knowledge, we’re going to look at some high profile organizations that have been phished.

Facebook and Google

Two of the biggest names in business on the planet, Facebook and Google found themselves at the center of the same phishing scam a couple of years ago.

Evaldas Rimasauskas, from Lithuania, used a simple phishing campaign whereby he posed as the head of a Taiwanese parts manufacturer called Quanta. Key to this scam was that Facebook and Google both used the genuine Quanta company to conduct business with. Through a combination of compromised emails, forged invoices and a lack of suspicion on the two tech giants’ behalf, around $100 million was paid out to Rimasauskas between 2013 – 2015.

Anthem

Anthem is one of the largest health insurance companies in the US and, as you can imagine, they hold a substantial amount of private and confidential data. However, in 2014 they lost nearly 78.8 million consumer records due to a phishing attack.

It’s believed that a foreign government was behind the attack, but the method employed was still ridiculously straightforward. An employee at an Anthem subsidiary opened a phishing email which allowed malicious content to be downloaded to the employee’s PC. Once these files were executed, hackers were able to take control of the PC by remote access and start making their way deep into the Anthem network. One of the sections that were of most interest was Anthem’s data warehouse where the hackers had access to customers’ medical histories, social security numbers and address details.

Snapchat

The popular social media app Snapchat found one of its employees being targeted by a spear phishing scam in 2016 which compromised confidential data.

A seemingly innocuous email was sent to Snapchat’s payroll department in February 2016 which claimed to have been written by the company’s CEO. The email requested that employee payroll information was forwarded on for internal reference. Unfortunately, one of the payroll employees did not realize this was a less than genuine request. A significant amount of personal information about former and current employees was then emailed to an external party. Due to the nature of the data obtained, hackers then had the potential to use it to engineer identity theft.

RSA Security

Even IT security companies aren’t safe from the threat of phishing emails as RSA security discovered back in 2011.

Hackers designed two separate emails which were sent to four employees at RSA’s parent company EMC. The emails, which appeared to be from a recruitment website, contained an attachment referred to as ‘2011 Recruitment plan.xls” in the email’s subject line. However, this was a malicious attachment and, upon clicking it, a zero-day vulnerability in Adobe Flash would be exploited and lead to the download of a backdoor virus onto the user’s PC. The hackers were then able to access RSA’s network where they had access to 44 million employee records.

For more ways to secure and optimize your business technology, contact your local IT professionals.

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4 Ways to Tell If You’re Being Phished

Cyber Attack, Hacking, malware, Password Security, Phishing, Phishing Email, Ransomware, Security, Security Threats, , , , ,
25
Sep 2018

Phishing is big business for hackers and you can rest assured that it’s a niche they’re keen to exploit, but how do you know when you’re being phished?

Kaspersky Lab reported around 246 million phishing attempts being executed in 2017, so it’s fairly clear that phishing is taking place on a monumental scale. And, to provide a little perspective, those 246 million phishing attempts are only the ones that were picked up by Kaspersky’s software. If you factor in all the other security providers’ data then you’re left with a staggering amount.

Phishing, therefore, is something that you’re likely to encounter and, the truth is, your organization is likely to receive a significant number of phishing emails every day. Thankfully, protecting your business from the dangers of phishing emails is relatively easy. And, to help boost your defenses, we’re going to show you four ways to tell if you’re being phished.

1.  Analyze the Email Address

While it’s straightforward to mask an email address with a false one, many hackers simply don’t bother. And that’s why you’re likely to find that most phishing emails are sent from unusual email addresses. Say, for example, you receive an email from your bank asking you to provide sensitive information regarding your account, it’s not going to come from a Hotmail address, is it? However, many people fail to check the sender’s email address and, instead, become distracted by the seemingly genuine contents.

2.  How’s the Grammar?

A tell-tale sign of a phishing email is poor grammar and even worse spelling. Hackers, after all, aren’t too bothered about honing their command of the written word. All they want to do is hack and hack big. Accordingly, their emails will fail to contain the type of language you would expect to receive from a work colleague or another organization. So, remember: if they can’t spell your name in their opening introduction then you should be highly suspicious.

3.  Did You Ask For Those Attachments?

Hackers love to catch their victims out with attachments that contain a nasty payload, so any attachments should always be treated with caution. Sometimes these attachments can be easily identified as malicious, but it’s not always simple. First of all, ask yourself whether the attachment is relevant to your job. If you work in the service department and you’ve been sent a spreadsheet relating to company finances then there’s no need for you to open it. Secondly, keep an eye out for file extensions you don’t recognize as opening these could easily lead to executing malware.

4.  Deceptive Links

One of the main objectives of a phishing email is to take the recipient away from the security of their PC and onto dangerous websites which are riddled with malware. And the best way they can do this is through the use of a deceptive link. While a link may look genuine on the surface, it can easily direct you somewhere else altogether. The best way to verify a link’s true destination is by hovering your mouse cursor over the link to reveal the true URL address.

For more ways to secure and optimize your business technology, contact your local IT professionals.

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What Should You Do When You Receive a Phishing Email?

Hacking, malware, Phishing, Phishing Email, Security, Security Threats, , , ,
11
Sep 2018

Phishing emails are the scourge of our inboxes and there seem to be more and more each week, so what should you do when you receive a phishing email?

The aim of phishing emails is for the sender of said emails to obtain sensitive information from the recipient. This goal is realized by cleverly disguising the email to make it look as genuine as possible and, therefore, gain the recipient’s trust. Data targeted by phishing emails usually relates to sensitive details including login details and passwords. And this data leakage can cause serious harm to businesses with the average cost of a phishing attack on a medium sized business costing around $1.6 million.

No organization that wants to remain productive and competitive wants to deal with the chaos of a phishing attack, so we’re going to take a look at what you should do when you receive a phishing email.

Do Not Open Phishing Emails

The best way to avoid the dangers of phishing emails is very simple: Don’t open them! This, of course, is easier said than done as phishing emails have become incredibly sophisticated over the years e.g. spoofing email addresses. However, if for any reason whatsoever you do not recognize an email address or there’s something unusual about the email subject then it’s always best to err on the side of the caution. Instead, move the cursor away and get your IT team to investigate it before going any further.

Leave Links Well Alone

Opening a phishing email isn’t enough, on its own, to activate the malicious payload, but it’s very simple to do so. Phishing emails often contain links which, once clicked, send the user to malicious websites where malware is automatically downloaded to the user’s PC. This malware is usually very discreet and is able to run silently in the background where it is able to log keystrokes or even take control of the user’s PC. So, remember: if you don’t recognize the sender of an email, it’s crucial that you never click their links.

Don’t Respond

Phishing emails will often try to gain your trust by establishing a connection, so you need to be mindful of these deceptive tactics. By hitting the reply button, for example, you’re demonstrating to the hacker that not only is your email account active, but that you’re willing to engage. And, if a phone number is provided, never ever ring it as it will involve further social engineering and potentially a very high phone charge to a premium member. It may be tempting to respond, but always say no and move away from engaging.

Report the Email

Any form of hacking represents a serious threat to the security of your organization, so it should be every employee’s duty to report a phishing email as soon as possible. This allows your IT team to analyze the email and its contents before taking action. This could be as simple as deleting it securely or telling you that, actually, it’s safe to open. Ultimately, shared knowledge allows your entire organization to stay on top of phishing emails, so, even if you’ve clicked something you shouldn’t have, report it immediately.

For more ways to secure and optimize your business technology, contact your local IT professionals.

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The Best Practices for Securing Your Printer

Printer Security, Printers, Security, Security Threats, , ,
31
Jul 2018

A printer may seem like a fairly innocuous piece of hardware, but it’s this assumption that makes it a major security risk. Therefore, it needs securing.

In a business, it’s likely that every single printer is networked. And, if something’s networked, then it represents a way into your network. Printers have been being hacked for decades, but it’s not as common as other threats such as malware and viruses. Accordingly, the average PC user in your organization is likely to be unaware of any security risks relating to that printer in the corner of the office.

However, there are plenty of risks and you need to understand what these are and how you can secure your printer and protect your network.

What are the Security Risks Associated with Printers?

When you’re working with printers, you need to be aware of the following security risks:

  • Back Door Access: Any piece of hardware on your network presents an opportunity for hackers to get a foothold in your network; printers are no different.
  • Print Data is Stored: A significant amount of print data is stored on internal memory within the printer and this can compromise the security of confidential data.
  • Susceptible Settings: Print settings can easily be manipulated to print to different locations and alter content during transmission to the printer.
  • Unsecure Documents: Printed documents can easily sit on printer trays for hours in a busy office and this is a major security risk as anyone can access them.

As you can see, there are myriad security issues related to printers, but how do you go about solving these threats?

Making Your Printer More Secure

Thankfully, there are simple and easy to action steps you can take to make your printer more secure:

  • Always Install Updates: As with all hardware, installing updates is one of the most crucial steps to take when it comes to securing hardware. All it takes is for one update to be missed for your printer to suddenly become vulnerable to new threats. It may seem fiddly and time consuming to install security patches, but it’s a lot easier to deal with than a compromised network.
  • Use Swipe Cards to Print: The best way to ensure that the correct people are picking up the correct documents from the printer tray is to employ swipe card authorization. For example, if one person in the office sends a spreadsheet to the printer, then it will only be printed once their card is swiped at the printer. This ensures that documents will not sit on the print tray for long periods.
  • Decommission Printers Correctly: When it comes to decommissioning printers, it’s vital that internal memory and hard drives are wiped. Once wiped, they should be destroyed to maximize the security of any data stored on them.
  • Limit Access to Settings: Access to printer properties and access settings should be tightly restricted to minimize disruption to the print network. A receptionist, for example, should have no need to install new drivers or disconnect printers from the network. All they’re likely to need access to is whether something is printed in color or black and white. Only IT professionals should have access to more complex, operational settings.

For more ways to secure and optimize your business technology, contact your local IT professionals.

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5 Best IT Practices for Small Businesses

Backup, IT Best Practices, Power Protections, Security, Technical Support, Updates, , , , , ,
09
Jul 2018

It’s important for small businesses to make the most of their IT capabilities, so understanding what the best IT practices are is paramount.

If you can implement the right IT practices in your organization then you’re clearly a smart thinker as it can only lead to increased productivity. However, for a small business this isn’t always the easiest strategy to formulate. The cost of investment can often restrict your use of brand new technology, so you need to be a little bit smarter. And the good news is that costs can be kept to a minimum.

To help you get started on getting the best out of your IT, I’ve put together a list of five best IT practices for small businesses.

  1. Backing up the Right Data

Backing up data can be an expensive process. Not only is physical storage costly, but cloud storage can soon start totting the dollars up. However, this is all dependent on the amount of data you want to back up. Therefore, if you can reduce the amount of storage you need to backup, you can reduce your storage costs. The best way to achieve this objective is by thoroughly researching how your data is used and determining exactly what you need to backup.

  1. Staff Security Knowledge

Cyber security should be a major concern for all businesses, but for a small business it’s crucial. With a wide range of new cyber-attacks such as ransomware and phishing emerging every day, the risk of your business operations being disrupted is high. Whilst firewalls and carefully secured, partitioned servers can make a huge difference, it’s even more useful for your employees to understand good security practices. All it takes is one malicious email to be clicked on to bring your organization to a halt, so ensure that regular refresher courses on security threats are conducted for your employees.

  1. Install all Updates

Keeping on the security theme, it’s essential that all updates for your software and hardware are installed as soon as possible. Once your IT equipment becomes even slightly out of date then it’s at risk of becoming vulnerable to hackers. However, if all the latest updates and firmware upgrades are installed, then you’re improving the defenses of your data no end.

  1. Good Power Protection

Your PC technology is important, so you need to ensure that it’s protected from the damaging effects of power outages and surges. Not only can these events reduce the lifespan of your technology, but they’re also capable of wiping data if they happen in the middle of a backup. To counter this risk, it’s vital that backup hardware comes with adequate battery support to keep backups running. Likewise, ensuring that your servers have reserve power supplies which are uninterruptible can help keep your data accessible and safe at all times.

  1. Provide Good Technical Support

Your business needs professional IT support, there simply isn’t any other option if you’re working with PCs. And when I say professional, I mean professionally trained and not a hobbyist who likes to tinker with their PC every now and then. Knowledge, after all, equals authority and when you’re working with complicated technology, you need as much authority as possible. Maybe this will be outsourced or maybe you’ll build an in-house team, either way it should be a priority for your organization.

For more ways to secure and optimize your business technology, contact your local IT professionals.

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