Government research into cyber breaches has found that two thirds of large UK businesses were hit by a cyber breach or attack in the past year. The Cyber Security Breaches Survey (2016) urges British businesses to protect themselves from the growing threat of cyber attack. Here to comment on this news are security experts from Barracuda Networks, Digital Guardian, Intel Security, QA, Kaspersky Lab, Performanta ltd, A10 Networks and Thales e-Security. Wieland Alge, VP & GM EMEA, Barracuda Networks: We see multiple studies of this kind carried out across Europe – all of which show the same patterns – and yet companies are still not…
ISB Editorial Staff
The world is not ready for cyber-attacks on critical infrastructure. Governments are not ready, law enforcement isn’t ready, the facilities themselves are not ready, and the people who design, build and operate them are often the least ready of all. Unfortunately, the criminals are very ready indeed. The world needs to wake up to the vulnerability of critical infrastructures to cyber-attack and to respond, emphatically, with Government regulation, industry-wide collaboration, education and deep, tailored protection. This is the stark conclusion of a group of industry experts who came together in London in late April to debate the cyber-threats now facing…
Following the government’s new Cybersecurity Breaches Survey revealing how unprepared most UK businesses are for cyber attacks, cyber security expert Jens Puhle commented on this news below. Jens Puhle, UK Managing Director of 8MAN: “One of the most shocking revelations in the Government’s research is the fact that just 10 per cent of UK businesses have an incident management plan in place. Given that two thirds of large businesses were breached this year alone, organisations need to think in terms of “when”, not an “if” they are attacked, and it is vital they have a solid response plan in place. “Businesses…
Our increasing dependence on technology and web-based communication has opened the door for cyber security threats. Cyber criminals are on the increase, and energy and utility companies are high value targets. Technology and data have completely transformed the power and utilities sector, allowing companies to use information to improve and expand services, and better engage with customers. However, this also brings added regulatory obligations around privacy and security — and the risk that sensitive data will be subject to increasingly sophisticated cyber attacks. As attacks grow in sophistication, IT infrastructure becomes more complex and the value of data increases, utilities’…
In light of the news today that Google has suffered a data breach via a third party benefits provider, Barry Scott, CTO, EMEA Centrify commented below. Barry Scott, CTO, EMEA Centrify: “Whilst the Google breach resulted from an email error, it highlights the risks posed by third parties. When it comes to IT security, you are only as strong as your weakest link. If a hacker can find their way inside the network, they will then seek any opportunity to elevate privileges, and completely circumventing existing company defences such as firewalls in order to reach their ultimate goal. Dealing with third parties…
Organisations are acutely aware that the risks to their online services and data today are greater than ever – and growing fast. According to the 2015 Information Security Breaches Survey, 90% of large organisations, and 74% of small businesses suffered a security breach in 2015, an increase on both 2013 and 2014 figures.[1] This statistic, and the recent unprecedented scale of the Panama Papers data leak should once again bring data security to the top of the boardroom agenda. As more businesses move their technology estate to the cloud, they need to be confident their technology partners can really deliver…
Phishing attacks have cost US companies somewhere between £508m and £1.43bn over the past two years, as clear a signal as any that email scams are to be taken seriously. While perhaps the most familiar phishing scam, ‘deceptive phishing’, is a simple case of hackers sending fake emails which appear to be from trustworthy companies asking for log-in or bank details, other types of fraud have evolved from this technique and require greater levels of vigilance. ‘CEO Fraud’, for example, occurs when a fraudster sends an email to a company’s accountant, apparently from a figure of authority, requesting a payment…
British retailer Kiddicare has suffered a data breach in which the personal details of nearly 800,000 customers have been stolen. The company said that the data had been taken from a version of its website that had been set up for testing purposes at the end of 2015. Customers have reported suspicious text messages that have not been sent by Kiddicare, suggesting that the hackers are using the personal details for targeted scams. Here to comment on this news are security experts from QA, Blancco Technology Group and WhiteHat Security. Richard Beck, Head of Cyber Security, QA: “In security circles we…
Many of history’s online security breaches can be traced back to human error. All it takes is one wrong click before you realize that email contained a well of trouble, and the repercussions are just beginning to snowball up the chain. You see, cyber attackers target a company’s lower-level employees. And they do so with the goal of progressing their attacks up the ladder until they’ve reached their real target: the big fish. As lower-level employees aren’t always versed in cyber security, they make the best targets. Cyber attackers don’t expect executive-level employees to fall for the popular rouses like…
White hat hackers have managed to break into the infamous Locky ransomware and replace the malware payload with a plain-text message that reads ‘Stupid Locky’. Richard Beck, Head of Cyber Security at QA, commented on this news below: Richard Beck, Head of Cyber Security at QA: “Today’s ‘Stupid Locky’ story sounds like a good old fashioned Robin Hood story. White hat hackers turning the tables on the dastardly robbers trying to demand a ransom from poor unsuspecting businesses. However, whilst it has raised a smile or two today, there’s a more serious side to the story that businesses need to consider. Relying on vigilante…