In late March 2024, the cybersecurity community was shaken by the revelation of a critical vulnerability in XZ Utils, a popular open source compression tool integral to many Linux systems. The discovery was made by Andres Freund, a developer at Microsoft, who reported that versions 5.6.0 and 5.6.1 had a backdoor that could potentially allow unauthorised remote code execution.

Recently, Computer Weekly released an article entitled “Budgets Rise As IT Decision Makers Ramp Up Cybersecurity Spending” on 18th March 2024. It was an interesting article as it cited a number of stats that showed that IT departments plan to increase their cybersecurity budget and that globally 65% of organisations were going to spend more on cybersecurity.

The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) was published over 15 years ago and in that time has undergone a series of revisions as technology, the threat landscape and information security best practices have changed.

The recent LockBit group take down has shown the world at large the cost of cybercrime. Initially it was reported that just over $100 million had been gathered through the nefarious acts of this particular group but, as I suspected, that initial figure was just a drop in the ocean. It turns out that the real figure was in excess of $1 billion dollars over the last four years, and I still suspect this may be more.

Over the last few weeks I have been catching up with a number of my cybersecurity contacts, primarily engaging with them for new content on our increasingly popular Razorwire podcast. During these conversations, as tends to happen during at this time of year, one of the things I have discussed with these professionals is what are (in their view) some key cybersecurity trends for 2024?

A big requirement that all European based organisations (or organisations that want to deal with the EU) must be aware of is the new DORA legislation coming in to effect in January 2025, and with just a year to implement your strategies, it’s worthwhile reviewing how you measure up now so that you have the time to ensure you comply before the deadline.

In SafetyDetectives‘ recent interview with James Rees, the Managing Director of Razorthorn Security, he provided insights into the company’s unique approach to cybersecurity consultancy and its evolution in response to the changing landscape. Established 17 years ago during a period of upheaval in the information security field, Razorthorn Security prioritizes customer satisfaction, fostering a customer-centric approach that has contributed to a high client retention rate.

We live in a business world where vast amounts of our critical services are delivered to us as a service. The world of on premise solutions has all but disappeared – sure, there are still some systems that operate on premise but these days, more key services are delivered to users and organisations as a service solution. This has increased profitability, allowed small companies to gain access to software and systems that previously were out of reach and has dealt a significant blow to piracy.

Here we are, at the end of 2023. It’s high time for updating defence in depth strategies across all organisations, and let me tell you why. We’re all aware of the uptick in high profile cyber attacks and compromises, across all sectors. Ransomware specifically has caused more economic loss and pain for the business world than any other information security event previously, and attacks are speeding up at a steady rate with larger and larger targets and ransoms being asked.

Unless you have been hiding under a rock the last few weeks, you will know about the SEC taking action against the SolarWinds CISO in a landmark case that is going to change the way CISOs undertake their jobs in the future. The SEC’s action against the SolarWinds CISO is a wakeup call for all CISOs.