Hackers: How Much do they Really Make? And at What Cost to Us?

The good news is that if you’re transacting with a website that has an SSL certificate, then the connection is encrypted so the data is rendered meaningless while it’s in transit.

So if you were checking your bank balance then you’d be OK – but it’s always worth checking for the padlock in the url address bar.

However, hackers are looking for any chinks in your cyber armour. They’re looking for data and intelligence that will allow them to identify any vulnerability that will give them access to your device or PC. Once they’ve found it they’re ready to run the malware or exploits……and potentially make a lot of money from it.

In that respect, they’re effectively scavenging for information in the same way as someone going through your bins hunting for credit card statements or cash withdrawal receipts. Any clues that will help them in their quest to get their hands on your hard earned cash.

In the old-fashioned, paper-based world the solution was the shredder.  We need to get into the habit of deploying the digital equivalent.

That’s one of the reasons why the UK Government have been raising awareness of cyber-crime, by writing new standards and certifications, such as the Cyber Essentials scheme and running an advertising campaign with posters springing up across the London Underground.

So what can you do to reduce the risks when your people want to connect to your system wherever they might be?

A VPN or virtual private network allows secure access; encrypting data to render it worthless to the ‘eavesdropper’.

Another alternative is to disable Wi-Fi on company devices and provide 4G dongles which provide a dedicated connection.

It’s also reassuring to know that there are super-heroes out there fighting the hackers on a daily basis! I recently visited Sophos UK HQ and got a sneak peek into the mysterious world of the Sophos Labs where they track literally thousands of live hacks and viruses across the globe.

They’re also constantly campaigning to raise awareness of the threats and educate businesses and their people on the steps they can take to minimise the risk of a data breach.

I particularly like their light-hearted but incredibly impactful approach to such a serious subject. Take a look at their approach in this special presentation we’ve put together.  We’ve also got some more information on the IT Security pages of our website and we’ve just created an infographic about how hackers target businesses, using the weakest link in the security chain: human error.

Serious note :

we’re obviously not suggesting that anyone turns to hacking as a way to top up their income. But if the figures touted in the article are to be believed then there will always be those who are tempted. And the threat will persist.

This blog was originally published here.[su_box title=”About James Dettmer” style=”noise” box_color=”#336588″]Over the years James worked with a dozens of UK businesses from various industries and a range of size from 10 staff to 1,300 staff. Work has involved things like providing colocation space in market leading data centres to solving troublesome business problems through the use of applications and automation. Most common projects are supporting IT infrastructure refresh, systems consolidation, office moves and integrating acquisitions/mergers. James thoroughly enjoy working in business and technology, He is a massive gadget junkie and aim to teach himself something new every 3 months. Most recently he has been learning about music production in his spare time, although he quite likes the idea of the Apple Software Development Kit to teach himself how to code applications for iDevices – perhaps the next step.[/su_box]