Threats to business come in all shapes and sizes but in the modern world of business, cybercrime has taken to the forefront as one of the most important. Just this week 170 million passwords were stolen from a data breach involving a popular online game.
What are Cyber Attacks and why does Your Business need to know?
Where there is the potential for money to be made online, there will always be criminal activity. Cyber attacks are one of the biggest threats to modern businesses and taking the necessary steps to prevent falling victim to this abhorrent crime is imperative if your company is to thrive and prosper.
A business can suffer huge setbacks to this kind of crime and in some cases, it can bring companies to their knees. Cyber attacks are a mixed bag and protecting yourself requires a considered approach. Ransomware, Malware, and Spyware are all developed by corrupt programmers looking to extort money or extract confidential information from computers.
With access to your important files, banking details and passwords cybercriminals could have a field day and it could spell disaster for your business. Checkpoint Direct specializes in protecting large businesses from just such threats to your business and they’ve developed comprehensive strategies for dealing with cyber attacks.
What is Ransomware and how to stay safe?
Ransomware is a form of Malware (Malicious Software) designed to cause harm to a computer, network or server. This is a classic form of extortion reimagined for the online world and one that businesses of all kinds should be aware of. Ransomware works by effectively locking you out of your computer system until you pay a ransom to the nefarious developer who installed it on your machine.
Attackers often threaten to publish private data from your machine should you not cough up. Nowadays criminals often request to be paid via cryptocurrency in order to make tracking their whereabouts next to impossible. Ransomware relies on Social Psychology to draw its victims in, by posing as legitimate authority figures such as law enforcement when requesting a fine be paid.
The best way to avoid falling victim to this kind of attack is to browse the web carefully and only open emails from sources you can trust. A strong antivirus package will go a long way toward keeping your business safe from this kind of attack going forward.
What is Spyware and How to Protect Yourself?
Spyware is another form of Malware that infiltrates your computer in order to gain access to your sensitive user information. Effectively, Spyware can eavesdrop on your activity whilst you’re using your computer. It effectively listens in and watches your activities as you go about your daily tasks.
In doing so, Spyware attempts to capture important information such as banking and online logins, password data and this information can be devastating in the wrong hands. Personal details such as your name, address and whereabouts can lead to identity theft and Spyware is at the center of this emerging crimewave. When considering protecting your business against Spyware attacks it doesn’t bear thinking about the consequences of leaving things to chance.
