[Security Trends For 2016
Virginie Fayad
The Covid-19 pandemic forced most organizations to shift their workforces to remote work, often quite rapidly. Many surveys suggest that post-pandemic, a high proportion of the workforce will continue to work remotely.
Many employees are using their personal devices for two-factor authentication, and they may well have mobile app versions of instant messaging clients, such as Microsoft Teams and Zoom. These blurred lines between personal and professional life increase the risk that sensitive information could fall into the wrong hands.
Therefore, a critical cyber security trend is for organizations to focus on the security challenges of distributed workforces. This means identifying and mitigating new security vulnerabilities, improving systems, implementing security controls, and ensuring proper monitoring and documentation. Read our detailed guide to working from home safely for more information and advice.
The expanding Internet of Things (IoT) creates more opportunities for cybercrime. The Internet of Things refers to physical devices other than computers, phones, and servers, which connect to the internet and share data. Examples of IoT devices include wearable fitness trackers, smart refrigerators, smartwatches, and voice assistants like Amazon Echo and Google Home. It is estimated that by 2026, there will be 64 billion IoT devices installed around the world. The trend towards remote working is helping to drive this increase.
Ransomware made history in 2020 by contributing to the first reported death relating to a cyber-attack. In this incident, a hospital in Germany was locked out of its systems, leaving it unable to treat patients. A woman in need of urgent care was taken to a neighboring hospital 20 miles away but did not survive.
Ransomware attackers are becoming more sophisticated in their phishing exploits through machine learning and with more coordinated sharing on the dark web. Hackers typically demand payment in cryptocurrencies which are difficult to trace. We can expect to see more ransomware attacks on organizations that are not cyber secure in the near term.
Cloud vulnerability continues to be one of the biggest cyber security industry trends. Again, the rapid and widespread adoption of remote working following the pandemic increased the necessity for cloud-based services and infrastructure drastically, with security implications for organizations.
Organizations are increasing their protection against phishing, but criminals are always looking for new ways to stay ahead. This includes sophisticated phishing kits which target victims differently depending on their location.
One of the key data security trends is the rise of data privacy as a discipline in its own right. Numerous high-profile cyber-attacks have led to the exposure of millions of personally identifiable information records (PII). This, coupled with the introduction of stricter data laws worldwide, such as the EU's GDPR, means data privacy is increasingly being prioritized.
The sheer volume of cyber security threats is too much for humans to handle alone. As a result, organizations are increasingly turning to AI and machine learning to hone their security infrastructure. There are cost savings to doing so: organizations that suffered a data breach but had AI technology fully deployed saved an average of $3.58 million in 2020.
AI has been paramount in building automated security systems, natural language processing, face detection, and automatic threat detection. AI also makes it possible to analyze massive quantities of risk data at a much faster pace. This is beneficial both for large companies dealing with vast amounts of data and small or mid-sized companies whose security teams might be under-resourced.
While AI presents a significant opportunity for more robust threat detection among businesses, criminals are also taking advantage of the technology to automate their attacks, using data-poisoning and model-stealing techniques.
In this age of accelerated digital transformation, cybercriminals are constantly looking for new ways to target and cause harm to individuals and organizations, which means cybersecurity issues continue to evolve. Using a high-quality antivirus software solution such as Kaspersky Total Security will help you stay safe in the face of the latest cyber threat trends.
As in every other field of business and technological endeavor, artificial intelligence (AI) will have a transformative impact on both attack and defense. Its impact will be felt across every one of the trends covered here.
Social engineering attacks involving tricking users into giving attackers access to systems will also increase in sophistication. Generative AI (such as ChatGPT) tools enable more attackers to make smarter, more personalized approaches, and deepfake attacks will become increasingly prevalent. The response to this will largely revolve around organization-wide awareness and education, although AI and zero trust will play a growing role, too.
In 2024, cybersecurity is a strategic priority that can no longer be siloed in the IT department. Gartner has predicted that by 2026, 70 percent of boards will include at least one member with expertise in the field. This enables organizations to move beyond reactive defense, meaning that they can act on new business opportunities that come with being prepared.
Companies around the world are faced with a burgeoning number of cyber security threats, data breaches and attacks that can be expected to grow in volume and complexity over time. Therefore, cyber security responses and preventions must evolve in capability and function to match these growing threats.
In recent years, cyber security has become a strong focus for organizations of all sizes in the wake of highly publicized data breaches and cyberattacks. This is leading companies to adopt a stronger focus on prevention, versus merely detection or response, to stay ahead of cybercriminals.
It can take millions for a company to recover from a severe cyberattack, and many businesses can't afford to take a relaxed approach to their data and network protection anymore. Being a victim of a cyberattack can be costly.
Sizeable fines assessed by regulators such as the Federal Trade Commission and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in the United States and their European and Asian counterparts clearly suggest that regulatory agencies are getting serious about punishing organizations that fail to protect consumer data. According to CSO, since 2019, Amazon, Equifax, Home Depot and Capital One combined have paid nearly $2 billion in penalties levied by regulators in the United States and abroad.
More people working from home means new cyber security risks. The reason for this is simple: people. Human error is often the enabler of severe cyber security breaches. An employee working at home may be more likely to have a less-secure internet connection, leave their computer unattended or be fooled by an innocent-looking email from someone posing as a trusted colleague.
Computing devices embedded in IoT products allow for sending and receiving data over the internet, posing significant security threats to users, and exposing them to cyberattacks. Smart appliances, such as voice assistants, like Google Home, fitness watches and even smart refrigerators are all IoT (Internet of Things) devices.
According to forecasts by Insider Intelligence, there will be 3.74 billion IoT mobile connections worldwide by 2025 and more than 64 billion IoT devices installed by 2026. As the recent growth of the IoT has created new opportunities for business and enabled quality of life improvements for consumers, the doors of opportunity for cybercriminals have also been flung wide open.
The expanding role of machine learning (ML) in cyber security has become more proactive. With ML, cyber security is becoming simpler, more effective and less costly. ML develops patterns from a rich dataset and manipulates them with algorithms to anticipate and respond to cyberattacks in real time.
To produce effective algorithms, this technology relies heavily on rich and sophisticated data, which must come from everywhere and represent as many potential scenarios as possible. By implementing ML, cyber security systems can analyze threat patterns and learn the behaviors of cybercriminals. This helps to prevent similar attacks in the future and reduces the time cyber security professionals need to perform routine tasks.
According to Statista, there were 6.5 billion smartphones in use in 2022. As consumers increase their usage of mobile devices for personal and business communication, shopping, banking and booking travel, these devices become an increasingly appealing avenue of opportunity for cybercriminals.
According to Cybernews, Apple prevented more than 1.6 million apps and updates from defrauding users in 2021, which in turn protected $1.5 billion in likely fraudulent transactions through its App Review process and Developer Code of Conduct. Look for more diligence from the tech giants as we head into 2024.
We all know that an unprotected password can allow cybercriminals to gain access to your bank account, credit cards or personal websites. This enables them to gain access to your money and your personal information and compromise your overall digital security.
According to the identity and access management company Okta, more than 55% of enterprises use MFA to protect security and that number rises each year. In 2024 look for more consumers to adopt multi-factor authentication (MFA) as part of their cyber security behaviors to make it twice as hard for hackers to gain access to their accounts.
Traditional cybersecurity techniques like antivirus software, firewalls and anti-malware engines are no longer sufficient enough to protect against threats produced by machine learning-powered attacks. Artificial intelligence integration in cyber security is rapidly driving growth in this industry, from $8.8 billion in 2019 to a projected growth of $38.2 billion by 2026.
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