5 Major Cybersecurity Threats You Need to Know About

With cyber attacks on the rise, we’re forced to pay more attention to cybersecurity threats on a daily basis for the safety of our businesses.

Whether you’ve been following what’s been happening lately with cyber attacks or are new to this topic, keep reading to learn about cybersecurity threats you need to know about.

Cybersecurity Threats: Where to Start?

First, before we begin discussing cybersecurity threats, what do we mean by the term cybersecurity?

Cybersecurity is the practice to maintain the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of information. This might seem like a mouth full to you but it’s what keeps the information on your laptop private. It also helps you recover your data when something goes wrong.

Every day we see more and more cybersecurity breaches. Here are the 5 major cybersecurity threats this year.

1. Ransomware Reigns Supreme

You might’ve heard about the WannaCry ransomware attack. It was one of the most widespread ransomware attacks.

The thing about this cyber attack is that it hit many high profile systems including Great Britain’s National Health Service. Until recently, this type of attack only hit Windows PCs but now we’ve seen that it’s spreading to Mac and Linux PCs.

Also, there’s information that it’s being used to target smart phones and tablets with Android and IOs operating systems. The versatility of ransomware has made it one of the cyber threats expected to continue in 2018.

2. Big Data and Malware in Cloud = Big Breaches

Today, the use of clouds to store data has grown, be it for backups, payment systems, online businesses, you name. However, is this as great when it comes to security as it is for business?

You probably heard of one of the latest big data victims to cyber attacks, Equifax. This breach exposed the information of 143 million Americans. Experts expect to keep seeing attacks on clouds because they are a goldmine of information.

3. IoT, DDoS, and Botnets

Are Alexa, Siri, Cortana and Google Assistant actually helping you? Well, yes and no. They might help you multitask and get your delivery faster, but, here comes the bad news. Every connection to the Internet is a door for hackers.

Since many of these products are designed with inadequate security, they’re expected to become targets of cyber attacks.

4. Social Engineering, Spam, and Phishing

Many think that computer errors are the cause of most data breaches, but, in reality, human error is the leading cause.

Experts have suggested that unpatched software with social engineering can be attributed to 100% of attacks. An example of the latter is when cybercriminals unrelated to the initial attack start sending out emails posing as financial institutions.

It’s expected we’ll see more attacks like these due to the ease of social engineering.

5. Another Election Hack on the Way?

The cyber attacks of the 2016 presidential elections have undoubtedly received major attention. The U.S. government has been putting in place measures to prevent any hacking of the midterm elections in November 2018.

Yet, there are many ways cybercriminals can still hack the elections. Unfortunately, these might not be anticipated by the government.

Wrapping It Up

In 2018, cybersecurity threats are expected to increase, resulting in damage to businesses and institutions.

Want to cover your bases and protect your business from these cyber threats?

Sagacent Technologies offers technology management and support, including proactive/preventative maintenance, onsite and offsite data back-ups, network and security audits, mobility solutions, disaster planning and emergency business resumption services. The company serves clients of 10 to 150 employees within the Silicon Valley region.