Hacking Archives - Page 2 of 4

17 Trends to Consider for your Cybersecurity Budget

Today, organizations are losing up to $3.92 million in every data breach incidence. This translates to a 12% increase since the year 2014. What such statistics indicate is that cybercrime has been increasing, largely perpetuated by an emerging breed of hackers. They are motivated by new technological advances, which they use to innovate stronger, more resilient, and more sophisticated attacks. More so, businesses are leveraging the benefits of digitizing their services and operations. In a recent study done by Brother International Corporation, it revealed an 18% increase in investments spent on small and medium-sized technology. A separate survey also showed … Read more

Cyber Threat Hunting – A Complete Guide

by Joseph Ochieng

Cyber threat hunting is the process of proactively hunting for attackers or malware that are lurking in your network system and may have laid undetected. Just like real-life hunting, cyber threat hunting can be quite challenging and requires a uniquely trained professional with considerable patience, creativity, critical thinking, and a keen eye for sporting out the target prey. The prey may be quietly listening for confidential information, patiently siphoning off data, or working their way toward significant data, which can help them access crucial information or assets. Every organization needs additional cyber protections in addition to commercial cybersecurity solutions. This … Read more

Cybersecurity Disasters You Need to Know

by George Mutune

The cybersecurity landscape has been “quite busy” as organizations have committed many investments towards their cyber defenses. Despite this, cyber adversaries have managed to outmaneuver some companies, causing severe attacks and data breaches. Some of these are serious enough to be considered disasters. It is vital to know about the top cybersecurity disasters in recent history. We explain their impacts and their resolutions. 1. Ransomware attacks Ransomware attacks have been prevalent. The healthcare industry alone has lost over $25 billion to ransomware attacks. A survey drawing cybersecurity professionals from various industries showed that 81% believe that this past year has … Read more

Top 12 Website Security Practices for 2021

by George Mutune

Website Security is important because hackers attack at least 50,000 websites every day. These are worrying numbers because almost every business has an online presence. The attacks target businesses of any size. Approximately 43% of the attacks target small businesses. This means that everyone from the individual site owner to the large corporation is a target for hackers. Websites contain a lot of sensitive information. They contain sensitive data like email addresses, names, dates of births, and credit card numbers. Today, protecting information privacy is enforced in most information compliance regulations. Adopting website security best practices is a step towards … Read more

Computer Forensics – A Complete Guide

by Joseph Ochieng

Introduction to Computer Forensics Computer Forensics is used to answer two of the most commonly asked questions about hacking attempts and data breaches: How did the attack happen? Is there a possibility of recurrence, and can such threats be prevented from ever happening again in the future? There are no specific answers to these questions as it depends on the level of severity or rather the complexity of the cyber-attack. The process of identifying how the attack happened and whether it can happen again in the future can take weeks or even months. For an in-depth analysis of the origin … Read more

22 Best Items for a Cybersecurity Checklist

by George Mutune

A cybersecurity checklist is important since cybersecurity investments can be a complicated process. An organization must first identify vulnerable assets, determine how vulnerable they are, and allocate sufficient budgets needed to enhance their security. In any cybersecurity program, companies should, at the very least, include the following: Procedures for identifying and assessing cybersecurity threats and risks Secure assets from attempted cyber intrusions Detect instances of IT assets and systems being compromised Plan a response in anticipation of a data breach or security compromise Plan and implement a recovery plan for recovering unavailable, stolen, or lost assets Developing a holistic program … Read more

19 Social Media Security Best Practices

by George Mutune

Social Media Security has quickly become one of the most important issues facing business and individuals. Unlike a few years ago, social networking has asserted itself as one of the primary means for communication. Large corporations and individual users alike prefer the channel for various reasons. The most common ones are the ability to communicate with millions of users at a go, connecting to people from any part of the world, and facilitating the sharing of all types of media. Such include pictures, videos, text messages, and voice and video calls. Despite its popularity, social media poses security risks due … Read more

Cyber Threat Analysis – A Complete Guide

by Joseph Ochieng

Cyber threat analysis is the process of assessing the cyber activities and capabilities of unknown intelligence entities or criminals. A cybersecurity threat or “cyber threat” can be defined as a malicious act that seeks to disrupt digital life. This act could be the disruption of a communication pathway, the damage of data, or stealing data. Hackers target enterprises, governments, institutions, or even individuals with valuable information. Threats posed by cyber-attacks include denial of service attacks (DoS), computer viruses, malware, phishing emails, and others. The attacks target anyone with an online presence. Cyber-attacks can lead to electrical blackouts, breaches of government … Read more

23 Top Cybersecurity Frameworks

by George Mutune

Many organizations consider cybersecurity to be a priority. The need to implement effective cybersecurity frameworks grows every day. Cybercriminals continuously derive more sophisticated techniques for executing attacks. This has led to the development of various cybersecurity frameworks meant to assist organizations in achieving robust cybersecurity programs. Therefore, businesses should understand the top cybersecurity frameworks for enhancing their security postures. Cybersecurity frameworks refer to defined structures containing processes, practices, and technologies which companies can use to secure network and computer systems from security threats. Businesses should understand cybersecurity frameworks for enhancing organizational security. The top cybersecurity frameworks are as discussed below: … Read more

Ten Essential Cybersecurity Controls

by George Mutune

Cybersecurity controls are essential because hackers constantly innovate smarter ways of executing attacks, aided by technological advancements. In response, organizations have to implement the best safeguards to strengthen their security postures. Developing a holistic approach entails adhering to international standards, complying with various regulations, and deploying defense-in-depth strategies. Cybersecurity controls are the countermeasures that companies implement to detect, prevent, reduce, or counteract security risks. They are the measures that a business deploys to manage threats targeting computer systems and networks. The controls keep on changing to adapt to an evolving cyber environment. As such, every organization requires to understand the … Read more

Compliance Regulations and the Future of Cybersecurity

by George Mutune

Compliance regulations provide organizations with acceptable standards for developing strong cybersecurity programs. Compliance is an important tenet underlying the development and maintenance of information security programs. Different regulations have emerged over the years to address increasing security challenges. Today, cyber actors are relentless in innovating new security risks, malware, trojans, and programs for compromising organizational security. Also, emerging technologies have always brought along unprecedented security risks. For example, the use of virtual currencies like Bitcoins, Monero, Ethereum, etc., have caused crypto-jacking attacks to rise, edging out attacks like ransomware attacks, which have been dominant for years. It is, therefore, vital … Read more

Smart City Security

by Oliviah Nelson

Smart cities are the future of technology. We are quickly becoming dependent on computers to run cities. Smart city technology addresses issues like energy, transportation, and utilities. This technology works to reduce resource consumption and waste to reduce costs. The smart city aims to enhance the quality of living of the people who live in it through the use of intelligent technology. Importance of Security in Smart City Security is an essential aspect of the success of a smart city. Security can be a challenge due to the involvement of many technologies and the interconnections of different networks and components. … Read more

The Quick and Dirty History of Cybersecurity

by George Mutune

The history of cybersecurity starts in the 1970s. At this time words such as ransomware, spyware, viruses, worms, and logic bombs did not exist. But today, the explosive rise of cybercrime has caused such words to find their way into news headlines every day. Cybersecurity is now a priority for every organization. Cybercrime is projected to cost the world trillions of dollars in the coming years. But how did cybersecurity evolve? This article describes cybersecurity from its early beginnings to the present time. From Academic to Criminality For most of the 1970s and 1980s, when computers and the internet were … Read more

Cybersecurity Laws – A Complete Overview

by Oliviah Nelson

Technology has grown exponentially over the past two decades. As time goes by, we continuously benefit from and increase our dependence on technology. Web applications, drones, mobile applications, industrial automation, machine learning applications, and other technologies have changed our lives. But there are immense dangers that these technologies bring us. Therefore, our governments have introduced cybersecurity laws. The Scale of the cyber threat The United States government spends approximately 19 billion dollars every year on cybersecurity. But cyber-attacks continue to increase every year rapidly.There are three main threats cybersecurity efforts attempt to mitigate: Cybercrime: includes single or colluded acts to … Read more

The Security Downside of SMS-based Multi Factor Authentication (MFA)

by George Mutune

MFA is not always secure. Multifactor authentication (MFA) is thought to be an effective technique for identifying legitimate system users before granting access. MFA is a security mechanism that requires users to provide at least two types of correct authentication alongside valid credentials. This means that a user has to provide a correct username and password. Then the user must provide another form of proof like a verification code or use a physical object which only a legitimate user can possess. Some forms of MFA are vulnerable to security threats and may not serve the intended purpose of providing access … Read more

How to Become a Cybersecurity Specialist

by George Mutune

We outline the steps you need to take to become a cybersecurity specialist and enter a rewarding and exciting career path. Cybersecurity is one of the fastest-growing fields today. As a result, there is a huge skill gap in the cybersecurity industry. This gap has been widening. Organizations report that the shortage of cybersecurity skills has increased in every year since 2016.[1] Similarly, the World Economic Forum indicated in a 2019 report that the U.S. has more than 200,000 cybersecurity specialist positions that are hard to fill.[2] However, organizations are prioritizing cybersecurity due to an increase in cyber-crime. This leads … Read more

Guidelines for Cybersecurity on Ships

by Oliviah Nelson

Ships have become a target for cyber attacks. Hackers know that many of the ships are vulnerable, making them easy to hack. One of the things that have made ships an easy target is because they often do not take security precautions. Most of them do not have instruments that prevent and protect them from cyberattacks. They rely on old technology, which has many vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities make them easy to be attacked by hackers who have sophisticated technology. Ships need to invest in new technology, and they also need to have security standards to protect them from hackers. Security … Read more

Challenges in cybersecurity that are hard to protect yourself from

by Oliviah Nelson

As we continue to look for ways to curb cyber threats, companies and individuals are increasingly facing more and advanced threats. Cybercriminals use various methods to execute their threats. There is no clear way to deal with or to eradicate cyber crime though there are some ways we can limit the risk and protect ourselves from these criminals. Some challenges in cybersecurity are more complex than others and are more challenging. In this article, we are going to walk you through some of these threats that are somehow very hard to mitigate. Some of these threats are from outside the … Read more

Tips to Avoid Becoming a Social Engineering Victim

by Oliviah Nelson

Cybercriminals are smart, sneaky, and are becoming more creative with how they conduct cyber-attacks. Social engineering is a core tool that is being used by these malicious people to execute their plans and exploit their targets to the fullest. They will use all their best techniques and skills to lure you into their traps. You need to know how to avoid these bad minded people who can easily manipulate you if you are not careful. These hackers are hoping that you are naïve, and you do not know what to do. Here are a few tips to help you avoid … Read more

Basic principles of Ethical Hacking – Footprinting

by Oliviah Nelson

The first step in ethical hacking is to gather information on the target system. The tools and techniques used to gather this information is called Footprinting. Footprinting includes gathering information about the network, host and also people who work in that organization. It is a key process that needs to be done thoroughly for any ethical hacker to be successful. Security posture Footprinting helps in assessing the security posture of an organization. It allows the ethical hacker to learn the IP addresses, DNS information, operating systems, phone numbers, email ids, and other valuable information. Footprinting can provide an overview of … Read more

Three Easy Ways to Protect Your Website from Cyber Attacks

by Oliviah Nelson

You might not think that your website is a target for hacking. The truth is, however, that all websites are targets for hackers. It is best to take action to mitigate the threat from hackers before you end up being a victim. Installation of a secure socket layer in your website Security socket layer (SSL) will guard your website from intruders. SSL will enable your website to submit personal and financial information securely. Getting and installing an SSL certificate is quite easy. In most cases you just need to order the SSL certificate from your website host. Their technical team … Read more

Top hacking techniques

by Oliviah Nelson

Hackers have been coming up with different ways of hacking, and it is time for you to know those techniques for you to be on the safe side. When you get to know their tricks, you will be able to keep yourself safe and be able to counter any malicious activity that may be planned against you. Denial of service (DoS) This attack is accomplished by hackers taking down servers or sites by flooding them with a lot of traffic. Hackers use Botnets – hundreds or thousands of maliciously controlled computers – to flood the target with so many requests … Read more

Ways Hackers Get Into Your Website

by Oliviah Nelson

Hackers know that many websites are not secure and are easy targets. In 2019 the number of hacked websites rose by 32 percent. This is alarming and shows how risky websites can be. Google believes that this number will continue to grow. There are many different ways in which hackers can get into your website. Uninstalled Security updates The lack of essential updates to your website may put your site at risk. Always be on the safe side by making sure that you have updated your web server software, CMS, plugins, and all the software that is being used by … Read more

How airplanes should protect themselves from cyber threats

by Oliviah Nelson

There are always more than five thousand planes on the skies every single minute and most of these aircraft rely on software for their operations. Any failure in the airline industry or even just a single airline could lead to a massive grounding of planes or worse! Air traffic management has embraced the use of digital technologies in airports and for a supply chain in order to improve efficiencies. Cyber criminals may have taken advantage of this to create an access point to the systems in order to steal data or to create damages. There is a greater need for … Read more

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