As attackers evolve their toolsets and processes, the significant drop in dwell time signifies a much higher risk to organizations that now have less time to detect and respond to initial attacks. This is bad news. Two years ago, the median dwell time – the time between gaining access to a network and executing the ransomware – was 5.5 days. Last year it was 4.5 days.
As insurers become more educated on what a “secure organization” looks like, they are tightening their requirements that puts the onus on organizations to be more secure. According to Netwrix’ 2023 Hybrid Security Trends Report, 59% of organizations either have a cyber insurance policy in place or plan to purchase one within 12 months. Cyber insurers have spent the last few years learning what they don’t know about this new market.
The massive uptick in business email compromise (BEC) is considered one of the costliest attack types, requiring organizations to put employees on notice to stay vigilant. The latest research from the FBI puts the average cost of BEC attacks at around $125,000. What makes them so dangerous is that they largely rely on text-only emails using social engineering to trick those with finance responsibilities into parting with the money they control.
Back to school is a great time to remember basic cybersecurity best practices to protect you and your family. These won’t surprise anyone who’s been parenting for the last few years, but what might surprise you is how fast things are changing, which can increase your risk of giving access to cyber criminals. That is mostly around all the applications, and even micro-applications, that most frequently provide the lowest levels of security.
Penetration testing is a pivotal strategy amongst various security methodologies, aimed at bolstering an organisation’s digital environment. Commonly known as “pen testing” or “ethical hacking”, this type of test represents a structured and regulated method for assessing the security integrity of a company’s digital ecosystem.
Composing song lyrics, writing code, securing networks — sometimes it seems like AI can do it all. And with the rise of LLM-based engines like ChatGPT and Google Bard, what once seemed like science fiction is now accessible to anyone with an internet connection. These AI advancements are top-of-mind for most businesses and bring up a lot of questions.
Last week in New York, I had the opportunity to attend a panel discussion hosted by SINET and moderated by Upendra Mardikar, the Chief Information Security Officer of TIAA. We discussed everything from security in DevOps, to AI’s pros and cons, and cybersecurity’s future. As long as the attack surface, API usage, and digital footprints increase, so will cyber risk.
