With time, cyber attackers are getting updated and using more advanced technologies to steal data and blackmail the victims to get the ransom. One such case happened last year with Austin business Tiny Pies’ Instagram.
The co-founder of Tiny Pies in Austin, Amanda Wadsworth, commented on this incident and explained that they received a mail from an unknown source, and though it looked unauthorized, they clicked on it. After opening the mail, the cyber attackers hacked their system and locked their data. They coerced them to give ransom or else they will delete the account.
Many cases showed that attackers threaten the victims for a ransom, or else they will leak confidential information on the dark web, where a large amount of such important information is already uploaded, as a consequence of cyber-attacks.
Bobby Stempfley, the vice president and business unit security officer for Dell Technologies, commented on the rise in cyber-attacks. Dell also has to face many cyber-attacks on Dell.
She stated that the organizations hold an “astronomical amount of data.” The organizations are managing data that is ten times more than the data that was there five years ago.
She mentioned, “It is an environment where, when you put in better protections, the threat actors work to find better ways to go, work around those protections.”
Considering the passion of cyber attackers to continuously find new ways to invade into target’s system and steal data, Stempfley started training employees of Dell to educate them about this ransomware and make them able to identify phishing and other attacks by ransomware.
Alert for holiday shoppers
The security company Tanium said that the cases of cyber-attacks are maximum during the holiday shopping season. Tanium added that hackers target when there is higher traffic on websites, such as on holidays, when people surf online more to find good deals.
Melissa Bischoping, the endpoint security research director at Tanium, said that "security is not just the responsibility of the company storing your data, but it is also an equal responsibility of the shoppers to be alert and aware of such attacks."
She explained, Shoppers should be cautious when they receive an email and first confirm whether it is legitimate or not. Prefer the trusted official app or the website instead of clicking on the links in emails with “a holiday sale” text.
She talked about other holiday scams that are carried out using botnets. Cyber attackers collect items that are popularly in demand and add them to sell. Melissa said that the updated technology is working as a helping tool for cyber attackers to target the victims.
To use the technology as a productive tool for your purpose instead of making it a weapon for hackers, you should follow some tips while shopping for sales online, such as:
1. In case you receive an email for a shopping sale, do not click on it directly. Search for its authentication on websites or apps.
2. Do not leave your credit card unchecked. Keep checking your credit card to know if there are any fraudulent charges.
3. Create different passwords for different websites and apps where you shop from.
