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5 Interesting Cyber Crime Stories

Abdul Saboor Malik
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5 Interesting Cyber Crime Stories

Living in this Internet Era, cybercrime has become a reality. Most of us might not have been a victim of this novel and digital world crime, but many have experienced it, ranging from individual to enterprises. These incidents stories reach us after the forensic investigators try to reverse the crime scene and get the artifacts so that the world is aware of rising crimes.

This blog aims to provide five interesting cybercrime stories to help you get aware and be safe while you live in the cyber world.

Story 1

A retired GP in the UK is under trial accused of murdering his pension advisor. The National Crime Agency (NCA) prosecutors have also found him accused of malicious calls and SMS communications. Moreover, the prosecutors moved to the dark web and found some digital evidence associated with the murder. On the dark web, a website named Crime Bay by Chechen Mob listed order for killing Mr. Bolden, the pension advisor. The agency said that GP used a particular browser to access the site and created an account there and choose the hitting options of ‘Kill the bastard’. The payment for hitman was in Bitcoin, which was worth $ 5000. These showed the evidence for his apparent involvement in digital crime

Story 2

Ashley Madison is a famous data breach. Its investigations were carried out by the Australian and Canadian privacy commissioner. The hack resulted in the online publishing of data of millions of users of the site. This includes many government officials as well. The breach consists of personal information that includes email accounts and credit card numbers. The investigations after the breach raised the questions on the data handling of users’ data and not following standard information security practices. The hacker’s group named Impact Team threatened to release the data and demanded to disband the site

Story 3

Wanna cry is one of the deadliest and famous ransomware attacks that infected millions of systems spanning users, private and government systems. A robust malware is exploiting the windows SMB vulnerability that was initially discovered by the NSA. This programmed widely spread across various healthcare and other networks. Once reached a system, it encrypts all the hard disk and renders the system useless unless the ransom of $300 is paid though Microsoft launched a patch earlier that was never applied at such a large scale anywhere [3].

Story 4

In March 2018, a widespread hack in the US was carried out by a group of Iranian hackers that lead to penetration of 144 US universities, 176 universities in 21 other countries, 47 private companies and others. Using the spear-phishing, the attackers were able to trick university professors letting the attackers compromise their accounts and gaining data. Hackers stole 31 TB of data and $3 billion Intellectual property loss

Story 5

A hacking campaign from Russia launched a new malware affecting 500,000 routers. The malware named VPNFilter created a botnet from the affected devices and could cause tamper with the web activity and data going through the routers. This malware can be used in spam campaigns and targeted attacks. The LEA has been working on to quarantine routers and analyze the malware impacts.

Countering Cybersecurity Attacks

Oliviah Nelson
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Countering Cybersecurity Attacks

It is a cry of every person, organization and even countries that a long lasting solution for cybersecurity is found.  Every day, reports of growing number of cases concerning breach in cybersecurity are reported and the risk increases daily due to growing number of interconnected devices being added to the internet.  Your information and data is not one hundred percent secure in your computer because you are exposed to the outside world. You never know who is trying to access your information.

What is cybersecurity?

Cybersecurity is processes and practices that work together to ensure integrity, authentication, confidentiality and availability of information.  It is defending against people who want to illegally access devices, information and data.  It is protecting your information, data and devices from illegal access. It also encompasses recovering from failures of the system and illegal access from attacks by hackers. Cybersecurity has layers of protection from computers, programs, data and network. For cybersecurity to be a success in an organization, there should be collaboration between people, processes and technology involved to assist in defending any cyber-attack.

Training

You need to get to know everything about cybersecurity for you to be able to counter any threat that comes on your way. Knowledge about cybersecurity is needed for you to win this war. There will always be a cyber-attack even when strong controls are implemented, because attackers are always looking for a weak places and links; it is possible to prevent these attacks by doing basic security precautions activities.

Users of the system need to be trained on current cybersecurity precaution measures like use of strong passwords. In addition users should also be advised not to open any attachment that comes from unknown people and they should treat it as a spam. Backing up of data after a period of time is necessity. In a big organization there should be people tasked to brief the employees of trending risks, news about cybersecurity and also necessary controls to counter those current threats.

Compliance and regulatory policies

Europe union’s General Data Protection Regulatory(GDPR) body is tasked to make sure that all organizations meet the privacy and security mandates that GDPR and all other bodies have set so that to counter cyber-crimes.

These bodies have lowered risk that Internet of things has exposed everyone to. They make sure that they have lowered risk of exposing organization and other institutions by coming up with rules and regulations that must be met to counter cybersecurity challenges.

In case of any successful breach of cyber-attack, an organization should have a well-respected framework to assist and guide on how to go about it. It should be understandable on how to identify, detect and respond to attacks. It should also guide on how to protect systems and respond to any threat that comes. A great framework is able to guide on how to recover from successful attacks.

Hiring cyber security professionals

You organization will be more secured from cyber threats if you get a professional cyber security expert. He will assist you in making sure your systems and devices are protected from challenges concerning cybersecurity. It gives you advantage over the others because, you will be well updated with any risks or concerns and necessary measures and control will be guided by a professional.  You may think it is not worth it, but it is worth everything you have because when a malware strikes you may lose everything.

Security tools

You need to get security tools that will be able to detect and counter any cyber threat that may come. Protection should start from Endpoint devices like computer, printers, routers and other devices. There is great anti-virus software that shield computers from internet attacks. You also need to have firewalls, emails solutions, malware protection and practice DNS filtering.

The Top 15 Most Used Passwords Will Make You Laugh… or Cry

Dan Evert, CCNP
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The Top 15 Most Used Passwords Will Make You Laugh… or Cry

Every year the guys at SplashData analyze millions of hacked and leaked passwords from websites and online services.  They then publish this most commonly used passwords that they find.

It is never a good idea to use such obvious passwords because there is virtually no security.  In fact, it is a common practice for hackers to simply run through the list of common passwords with multiple user names.  Boom – they get access to your private information and can use it to gain more information and cause damage.

Here is the list. 

1. 123456                  The top password in use. 

2. password             At least it is easy to remember!

3. 123456789          A bit stronger than the #1 password 🙂

4. 1234567              A bit weaker 🙁

5. 12345                  and the list goes on…

6. 111111 Don’t forget to change to 222222 the next time policy forces

7. 1234567 The number actually depends on the length requirement

8. sunshine

9. qwert

10. iloveyou

11. princes

12. admin

13. welcome

14. 666666

15. abc123

We found this list to be quite amusing.  It is human nature for people to choose passwords that are easy to remember.  Easy to remember passwords are often easy to guess.

This is one of the reasons that we think the use of passwords will eventually go away.  In fact, one potential solution is outlined in Passwords Suck and Will Eventually Go Away.

Of course, MFA (Multi-factor Authentication) has been introduced to be the savior of the password weakness dilemma. But hackers are becoming more and more sophisticated. There are many flaws in MFA also! We will be introducing some of the vulnerabilities related to MFA soon. Hackers are actively exploiting MFA!

CASP vs. CISSP – My Experience

Donald Korinchak, MBA, PMP, CISSP, CASP, ITILv3
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CASP vs. CISSP – My Experience

I decided to take the CASP exam for only one reason…

There is only one reason that I initially took the CASP exam instead of the CISSP. I did not make the decision logically.  I did not know the real differences between the tests.

I took the CASP test first because I thought it would be easier to pass. 

Plain and Simple – I thought that I would have a better chance to pass the CASP than the CISSP.  I heard that the CISSP was one of the most challenging and dreaded tests.  I heard story after story about people failing the CISSP.  I heard about one persistent person who was scheduled to take the CISSP for the 5th time.  Then I heard he failed it again.

So, I was scared to take the CISSP exam.  I did not think that I had what it takes to pass the test.

I did not hear the same things about the CASP.  I did not know a single person who had the CASP certification.  I also did not know anyone who took the test.  I did not hear any test horror stories.  I was uninformed, but I made the choice that was logical to me.  I would study for the CASP and try to pass it.

The CASP exam in a nutshell:

I believe that the CASP exam can be described as the test that should follow after you successfully pass the Security+ exam.

But the truth is that the CASP is probably 50x harder than the Security+ exam. 

The best way to pass the CASP exam is to pass the entry-level Security+ test and then work in the industry for around five years and learn everything you can along the way.

The reason that I say this is because the CASP exam requires you to have in-depth knowledge in the cybersecurity domains.

The CASP exam is for the technical folks who are in the weeds and know how to do the work.  The simulations on the CASP are quite difficult.  You never know what you will get, but I had questions about building networks, using Linux commands to complete tasks, matching terms, etc.

The simulation questions are all given at the beginning of the test.

They say that if you can get through the simulations successfully, then you will likely pass the entire CASP exam.  The thought is that the CASP exam weights the simulations more heavily than the multiple-choice section of the test.  Given this, I spent a long time working through the simulations.

I had about seven different simulations, and it took me an average of about 5-10 minutes to complete each of these.  You have 165 minutes allocated to complete the test.  I felt pretty confident that I could zip through the multiple-choice questions, so I was not concerned about moving slowly on the simulations.

Unlike the CISSP, you can go back and review your answers on the CASP exam.

This ability to review your answers and change them made the CASP exam a bit easier for me.  I found that subsequent questions would jog my memory and allow me to go back and correct answers.

Also, at the end of the exam, you can flip through all of the questions and answers and double-check that you did not make any blatant mistakes.

But just like the CISSP, the CASP exam is a monstrous test. 

If I had to compare the tests, I would say that the CISSP exam is more complicated.  The CISSP exam covers more depth — the questions on the CISSP exam range from obscure technical issues to IT management and leadership questions.

However, I don’t want to minimize the difficulty of the CASP exam.  The CASP exam is challenging and is undoubtedly it is a great and respected achievement to earn this certification.

My Recommendation

I recommend both certification exams.  The CASP will show your expertise at the technical level.  CASP proves that you can do the work.

The CISSP proves that you have both technical expertise and also prove that you have mastery of management and leadership concepts related to cybersecurity.

 

 

 

GDPR Summary: 5 steps to get GDPR compliant

Abdul Saboor Malik
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GDPR Summary: 5 steps to get GDPR compliant

Internet came into being in the early 80s and continued to evolve in decades. It provided a novel way of relaying information from its traditional physical form to electronic form. The information in electronic form is composed of binary 1s and 0s in its fundamental form. Over the years the world has gone through massive digitization of information which is commonly known as ‘Data’.

Today, we are living in the world of Artificial Intelligence, Data Analytics, Internet of Things and various rising technologies, data is becoming a new gold. Many refer to data as a new oil of the 21st century, However, unlikely oil, data regulation has long been a challenging task to do and it seems that this challenge will continue to expand as the internet embraces new technology, Population is entering the digital world and according to latest statistics  4,4 billion people are active internet users.

Now business and individuals have tons of digital data stored and processed online. This data has always been a subject to various cyber threats such as data breach, identity thefts, frauds and data leaks causing millions of dollars lost to individuals and companies. Investigating and incriminating these offences are thwarted due to lack of regulations and legal support for years, until serious efforts made by the EU to bring a data protection law known as GDPR on 25 May 2018.

GDPR is novel legislation from its predecessor to protect the data of individual users and giving more power over their data privacy. It has broadened the definition and scope of data to include information regarding IP address and cookies.  On the other hand, it gives a lot of restrictions to entities owning and processing data that include third parties as well. This regulation is mostly concerned with EU citizens data. It might be a win-win for the individual users but for the business and data owners, it has a huge fine of 20 million euros in case of non-compliant with GDPR.

This might become a nightmare for business dealing with data of EU citizens but it is never too late to start your preparations and be GDPR compliant as it demands a variety of different operations to ensure the data privacy.

These 10 steps are a good starting point to ensure you are GDPR ready

1. Data Organization

In the GDPR era, you should consider while organizing the data you have on your customers, employees, partners, suppliers etc. This saves you a lot of time in case someone wishes to inquire about his data. It will also help you in an investigation to get the desired data efficiently and accurately.

2. Secure Data

This step is necessary to ensure that all the personal data you have on others in digital form is secured using a proper security mechanism. You must ensure that you have adequate security controls in place and not vulnerable to any hack attempts. Can you easily manage the data and easily destroy it and in a secure place? Make sure you have all these safety measures considered.

3. Don’t get unnecessary Data

 Make sure you only have the data you need for the services you are delivering. Remove excess data as it migh get you in trouble if you become a part of an investigation

4. Implement a fair Privacy policy

A fair policy is very important as an ordinary internet user should know about how the company will deal with the data they provide to them. So, the documents describing the privacy concerns should be such that a layman can understand and know about what the company wishes to use the provided data and how.

5. Have your process for deleting data

GDPR also gives users the right to have their data deleted. This demands companies to also have a deletion process in place, to avoid any penalties.

There is a long to do list for companies concerned with GDPR, but these few steps can put you on the right track towards GDPR compliance.

AI Weaponization

George Mutune
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AI Weaponization

Artificial intelligence technologies are now being leveraged to execute intelligent cyberattacks. Hackers are combining open-source AI technologies with malware to create these AI-based attacks.  This is a trend that is creating new types of advanced and sophisticated threats.

AI technologies are used to conceal the malware embedded in applications. Using AI, the malicious behavior of the code is not triggered until the application reaches a particular target.

Cybercriminals usually conceal the unwanted information through applying an AI model and then derives a private key to determine the time and place of unlocking the hidden malware.

AI Triggers

Any type of app feature can be pre-defined as the AI trigger for unleashing an attack. For example, malware can be concealed to activate only after a voice recognition feature has been used. Any feature, including systems for authenticating users through visual recognition, geolocation, or the aspects implemented in a computer system to bolster identity management, can be used to trigger a hidden malware once they are used. This can cause a devastating attack, especially since cyber adversaries can use any of the indicators mentioned above to feed malicious AI models, derive a key, and then make a decision to attack at will. As such, malware can be present in a benign application for months or years as an attacker waits to launch where targeted systems will be more vulnerable and hence, susceptible to more damages.

AI Weaponization increases Sophistication

AI technologies can further be weaponized to increase the sophistication of cyber-attacks. AI-powered cyber-attacks can be very targeted to a specific system or individual and evasive such that the current security tools like firewalls or IDS are overwhelmed. This would give an attacker the upper hand causing massive damages. Moreover, AI technologies are capable of introducing an entirely new speed and scale of a cyber-attack. This can be possible since attacks can be equipped with autonomous and intelligent reasoning that can cause attacks to spread independently of any input or control from the attackers.

AI can Adapt to New Environments

Also, one unique factor about AI is its ability to adapt to a new environment or to use intelligence or knowledge acquired from past occurrences. The same can be applied in creating intelligent viruses and malware or modeling adaptable attacks. AI technologies are capable of learning and retaining what worked during an attack, as well as take stock of hindrances. Therefore, cyber-attacks based on AI can fail in a first attempt, but their ability to adapt can result in a successful attack on a second trial. Due to this, the security community and leading security firms need to gain an in-depth understanding of the basics behind the creation of AI-powered attacks and their subsequent capabilities so that they can develop adequate controls and mitigations.

Weaponizing cyber-attacks with AI can also create intelligent malware that can self-propagate in a network or computer system. The malware can exploit any vulnerability they come across, thus increasing the likelihood of fully compromising the targeted networks. The potential destructions associated with such malware is unfathomable. WannaCry, one of the most significant and most devastating ransomware attacks in history, exploited only one vulnerability, the EternalBlue exploit. Imagine the potential destruction had an AI-powered malware attack been executed. AI malware can use other forms of attacks in case a selected vulnerability has been patched.

AI Attacks can Learn

AI can also be weaponized to enable malware to mimic components of a trusted system, thus improving stealth attacks. For instance, rather than guessing the periods in which an organization conducts business operations, AI can be used to learn it automatically. It can also learn the environment used in computations, i.e., Windows or Linux environment, the most used communication protocols, updates to security apparatus, and so on. This can enable an attacker to execute attacks that thoroughly blend in with the security environments such that it is difficult to detect the attack. Therefore, AI can power stealth attacks capable of compromising targets without detection.

Conclusion

AI weaponization is on the rise and cyber-attacks will only become autonomous, stealth, increase in speed and sophistication, and be able to exploit several vulnerabilities all at once. Extrapolation of attacks powered by AI reveals that malwares possess sophisticated characteristics but with a narrow input or understanding on AI. A combination of the characteristics will lead to a shift in the current cybersecurity paradigm. Organizations have to step-up their ability to counter emerging AI cyber threats. A preventive strategy is currently the best cybersecurity approach, but with advanced AI attacks, security will have to consider implementing AI-enabled0 defensive tactics.

Cybersecurity Certifications You Need to Do

Oliviah Nelson
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Cybersecurity Certifications You Need to Do

In the current world, technology has taken over; companies in the world have embraced the use of technology to save resources.  Many companies are looking for the right people to employ who have competitive skills to help the organization become better. To become relevant in the job market today, you must have some certification in cybersecurity to gain skills that you need to not only stay competitive but to help you be able to counter-attack any cyber threat that comes your way.

In this article, I am going to walk you through some of the cybersecurity certifications that you need to do to remain relevant in the current trend. With these certifications, you’ll become responsible for designing, implementing, testing, and monitoring the security system of your company.

Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH)

Hackers are innovative, and they always on look for a new way of attacking the information system and to exploit system vulnerabilities. Organizations are looking for those who are highly skilled to safeguard their information. They usually engage the services and expertise of IT professionals with exceptional abilities and skills beyond that of hackers. The knowledge is referred to as white hats or white hat hackers.

Their primary role is to use the same information used by hackers to identify any vulnerabilities and weak points to prevent unwanted access or hackers from accessing network and information systems.

CEH is an international credential offered by EC-Council. The holders have excellent skills and hacking knowledge in areas like scanning networks, enumeration, Trojans, footprint and reconnaissance, sniffers, warms and viruses, SQL injection, evading IDs, honeypots, penetration testing, cryptography, wireless networks and web application, social engineering, denial of service attack, hacking web servers and session hijacking. You must pass one exam to obtain the certification.

Due to changes in technology and hacking trend, CEH holders should obtain 120 continuing education credits every three years.

Certified Information Security Manager

CISM is one of the topmost credentials for IT professionals who are responsible for developing, managing, and overseeing information security systems for developing the best security systems. ISACA introduced the certification in 2003. The main target of ISACA was IT professionals who have an interest in high standard quality standards in a security information system with regards to audit and control of the information system.

Credential holders in CISM possess rat skills in program development and management, security risk management, incident management and response, and governance. Holders must agree with ISACA’s code of professional ethics and possess five years of experience in security. Credential holders must pay annual fees of $85 for members of ISACA and $45 for members, and the credential remains valid for three years.

CompTIA Security+

Those who possess CompTIA’s credentials are regarded as those with superior technical skills, more extensive knowledge, and expertise in most security disciplines because the certification is a highly respected vendor-neutral security certification. Those who want to obtain TIA’s certification should first consider getting Network+ certification.

Though this certification is considered to be an entry-level certification, it is prudent for those aspiring to obtain the certification to have at least two years’ experience in networking. The U.S defense department approves the credentials and it also complies with standards for ISO 17024. The certification requires one exam. The certification is renewable every three years.

4 Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)

This certification is for pros that are very serious and want to take their careers in information to the next level. It’s recognized worldwide due to its standard level of excellence. ISC2 is offering the certification. Holders of this certification are experts with instinct knowledge and technical skills required for developing, guiding, and managing security in their organization. It’s structurally designed for experienced professionals. There are annual fees for maintaining this certification ($85). 

5 Licensed Penetration Tester

Arguably this is the pinnacle of cybersecurity certification given to those who have mastered the techniques of cybersecurity. A licensed Penetration tester is an expert level cybersecurity certification overseen by EC-Council. To qualify and be eligible for an exam, you must have an experience of at least two years as a penetration tester, have EC-Council security analyst certification and possess any anther industry-equivalent certification. The learning includes cybersecurity concepts such as OS exploits, privilege escalation, multi-level pivoting, and SSH tunneling.

The Top 20 Cities for CISSPs

Donald Korinchak, MBA, PMP, CISSP, CASP, ITILv3
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The Top 20 Cities for CISSPs

We analyzed the job postings, crunched the data, and determined the actual value of the CISSP certification to list the top 20 US cities for CISSP certification holders.

The monetary value of having the CISSP certification is dependent on your job market. If you obtain the CISSP certification and live in a city that has limited CISSP jobs available, then you need to make a choice – move to an area that has more opportunity or accept a salary that is not commensurate with your skills and abilities. Remote work is sometimes a possibility, but many cybersecurity positions require that the employees work on-site.

If you are trying to decide where to move to make the most money with a CISSP certification, this list is for you.

The Methodology

We complied raw data from job search portals to determine the average salary ranges from actual open positions. We compiled the data from LinkedIn, and Glassdoor, and other job websites. The data were analyzed and interpreted to create this list.

There is a margin of error in the data based on published job list salaries that are usually negotiable. Specific skill sets combined with the CISSP certification can demand a higher paycheck than in the published ranges. Some CISSPs with specialized experience will have the opportunity to earn far more than our calculated ranges.

The CISSP certification assumes that the holder has at least five years of experience in more than one cybersecurity domain. Given this experience requirement, holding a CISSP will assume that you also hold the required or preferred experience level for the positions we evaluated to determine job market value. This will not be the case for all of the jobs we looked at, but it is our general assumption.

Here’s the list:

#1. San Francisco CA
$100,100 to $145,700

San Francisco is one of the few job markets in which nearly all CISSPs earn an average of over $100K. The CISSP certification value is driven up by all of the technology companies around the silicon valley area. The cost of living is high in the area, but the pay is also great. With around 1000 open CISSP jobs in the area, there is always a demand. If you have a CISSP certification, then you will likely not ever be out of work in this technology hub.

Some of the companies who are actively seeking CISSPs include:

  • Accenture
  • First Republic Bank
  • Cisco
  • Salesforce
  • Deloitte

#2. New York City
$95,000 to $145,000

A CISSP certification is precious in New York City, with the upper range of salaries for CISSPs near $150K per year. The value is determined by both the demand for cybersecurity experts and the cost of living in the area.

Major employers for CISSPs in New York include:

  • Deloitte
  • Accenture
  • BNY Mellon
  • Engineering Research Group Inc.
  • EY

#3. Chicago IL
$90,000 – $140,000

The windy city has a high demand for CISSP, certified cybersecurity professionals. The salary range for CISSP positions in Chicago is just under that of New York City. With a cost of living that is more reasonable than many other cities, this is a prime city for cyber experts.

The major employers for CISSPs in Chicago include:

  • Accenture (16)
  • Request Technology
  • Crowe
  • Bank of America
  • Deloitte
  • Avanade

#4. Boston MA
$90,000-$135,000

Boston has a great job market for CISSPs. The low end of the market is similar to some of the other larger cities, but five years or more of experience will bring you a higher salary in the $135K range. The cost of living in this market is higher than average, but the town is alive with things to do.

Some of the companies who are actively hiring CISSP certified professionals include:

  • Raytheon
  • State Street
  • BAE Systems
  • Foreground Security
  • Accenture

#5. Washington DC Metro Area
$90,000 to $130,000

A CISSP certification is valuable in the Washington DC metro area (Including Northern Virginia and Maryland). There are roughly 10,000 open advertised job positions in this region.

Major employers for CISSPs include:

  • Booz Allen Hamilton
  • CACI
  • General Dynamics Information Technology
  • ManTech International Corporation
  • Perspecta

These companies are government contractors who hire people based on contracts that they win. The government defines the qualifications for the positions, and the qualifications are contractual. For many cybersecurity positions, the government requires the CISSP certification and other IAT Level 3 certifications to be considered for the job. Often a security clearance is required to be considered for government contracting CISSP positions.

#6. Los Angeles CA
$90,000 – $130,000

With consistently around 1000 open CISSP positions in the Los Angeles area, there is plenty of opportunity for cybersecurity experts. The salary range for CISSPs is comparable to the Washington DC metro area, but the cost of living in LA is a bit higher. If you are willing to fight the traffic and enjoy the weather, this is a great place to be a CISSP.

Major employers of CISSPs in the Philadelphia area include:

  • Northrop Grumman
  • Deloitte
  • RSM US LLP
  • Accenture
  • Time Warner

#7. San Bernardino CA
$90,000 – $130,000

The San Bernardino area has a pay range similar to Los Angeles, but the demand for CISSPs is far less. However, there are consistently a couple of hundred CISSP job openings in this area.

Some of the companies in San Bernardino who are actively hiring CISSP certification holders include:

RSM US LLP
Accenture
Southern California Edison
Esri
Deloitte

#8. Pittsburgh PA
$90,200 – $125,100

Pittsburgh has been working to attract technology companies over the last ten years. The ‘Burg is the home to many technology companies now because the city offers generous tax incentives for companies to move to the area. With a couple of hundred job openings available consistently, this lower cost-of-living city may be for you. Go Steelers!

Some of the companies in Pittsburgh that are employing and actively seeking CISSPs include:

  • Highmark Health
  • BNY Mellon
  • Software Engineering Institute
  • Accenture
  • EQT Corporation

#9. Minneapolis MN
$89,900 – $130,000

Businesses in the twin cities require CISSP certified professionals with several hundred open jobs consistently. If you want to work in this market, then the demand is certainly there, and the compensation range will allow you to live very comfortably.

Some companies in the Twin Cities area who are often looking to hire CISSPs include:

  • Target
  • Accenture
  • UnitedHealth Group
  • RSM US LLP
  • Best Buy

#10. Atlanta GA
$87,500 – $130,000

Atlanta consistently has 300-500 job openings available for CISSP certified folks. The cost of living is reasonable, and there is plenty of growth in the industry. The summers are hot, but the winters are mild. Most would say that Atlanta is a great city in which to live.

Companies like the following are actively seeking CISSPs in the area:

  • Fiserv
  • Accenture
  • E*TRADE FINANCIAL
  • Ernst & Young OM
  • Verizon

#11 Houston TX
$85,300-$135,700

The international city of Houston is a highly populated technology hub. This city is the home to many oil and energy companies like Shell, Exxon, and others. There are just under 800 open CISSP jobs in Houston and the surrounding areas.

Major employers in the Houston area include:

  • Deloitte
  • Accenture
  • RSM US LLP
  • Avanade
  • General Electric

Houston is an attractive market to work in for the young professional. The city is vibrant, and the weather is hot! The job market for CISSP cybersecurity professionals is also hot.

#12. Baltimore MD
$85,000 to $125,000

Baltimore has many hundreds of open CISSP jobs available for the taking. This city is trying to make its name as a cybersecurity epicenter in the US. Cybersecurity is the focus of many companies in this area. The short commute to military bases and even the Washington DC area makes this city bloom for cybersecurity pros.

Some of the major companies who are actively seeking out CISSP certified workers include:

General Dynamics Information Technology
CSRA
Northrop Grumman
Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
CyberLinx Solutions LLC

#13. St Louis, MO
$84,400 to $121,000

“The Gateway City” is not known for technology but still offers a comfortable salary for CISSP certified workers. Companies consistently advertise 100-200 openings for positions in this area that require the CISSP certification.

In St. Louis, some of the companies that seek out CISSPs include:

  • AT&T
  • CACI
  • Spectrum
  • Abile Group, Inc.
  • ManTech International Corporation

#14. Detroit MI
$84,400 to $129,500

There are consistently 100 to 200 open CISSP positions in the Detroit area. As expected anywhere, the average salaries for a CISSP can be into the low six figures.

Companies that are actively hiring for CISSP positions in Detroit include:

  • TARGET
  • Accenture
  • UnitedHealth Group
  • RSM US LLP
  • Best Buy

#15. Dallas TX
$84,100 to $130,100

The lower cost of living combined with great salary prospects makes Dallas a good place for CISSPs to work. There are just under 500 open jobs in this market, and the demand for cybersecurity experts is continuing to grow.

Major employers for CISSPs in the Dallas area include:

  • Verizon
  • Raytheon
  • Grant Thornton
  • Bank of America
  • Ernst & Young OM

Dallas is a technology hub. More and more technology companies are moving to this area for lower commercial real estate costs, tax advantages, and a great pool of technology workers. Verizon has a large campus just west of the city. Apple has a presence here and recently announced a large expansion of its workforce in this area.

#16. Denver CO
$84,000 – $125,000

The Denver area has several hundred open CISSP jobs at any time of the year. The salary range for these positions can get into the low six figures. If you love the outdoors and have the CISSP certification, then Denver may be the city for you!

Companies in the Denver area that regularly hire CISSPs include:

  • Lockheed Martin Corp.
  • AppliedTrust
  • Accenture
  • Raytheon

#17. Miami FL
$80,100 – $120,600

Miami has plenty of demand for CISSP cybersecurity professionals. The cost of living is a bit lower than many major cities, and the average salary for these positions is about $100k.

Some of the employers in this area who hire CISSPs include:

  • Enterprise Risk Management
  • ADT Security Services
  • ADT Corporation
  • Citi
  • Verizon

#18. Phoenix AZ
$81,500 – $122,000

If you like hot desert weather, Phoenix can be a good choice for the CISSP certified professional. Phoenix has a low cost of living, and the CISSP certification demands a nice salary in the area.

Major employers for CISSPs in Phoenix include:

  • Vitalant
  • Productive Data Solutions, Inc.
  • Early Warning Services
  • Wells Fargo
  • Paypal

#19. Tampa FL
$80,100 – $120,000

The Tampa area is quite inexpensive when compared with other major US cities. Given this, having the CISSP certification can earn you well over the average wage for a very comfortable lifestyle.

Some of the employers in the Tampa area who are actively hiring CISSPs include:

Verizon
RAYMOND JAMES FINANCIAL
PwC
Nielsen
RSM US LLP

#20. Omaha NB
$75,100 – $121,200

Omaha has a bit lower of a salary range than the larger cities, but there is still a market for cybersecurity professionals in the area. With both government and private sector opportunities available, we found about 500 open positions that require the CISSP certification.

Major employers for CISSPs in Omaha include:

  • TD Ameritrade
  • G4S
  • Oasis Systems, Inc.
  • LTi Technology Solutions
  • SAIC

Increasing demand for accredited cyber security professionals

Oliviah Nelson
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Increasing demand for accredited cyber security professionals

It has been reported by Information Systems Security Association (ISSA) that cybersecurity professionals believe organizations are facing cybersecurity skills shortage and that workload for cybersecurity professionals has increased as years goes by. Also, the report states that skills which have a significant shortage are security investigation analysis, software security, and cloud computing security. This report shows that the market is lacking enough cybersecurity professionals who have competitive skills.

Keeping up to date with new skills and knowledge is essential

Many organizations continue to server in silence because their needs in secure systems and networks are not met, and if they are met, they take time. Even if they have cyber security professionals, but they lack advanced skills that assist them to achieve what the company wants. Many of these professionals rely on their outdated skills, they have not updated themselves of new skills, and they are in darkness regarding what is going on recently in around the cybersecurity world.

Every day, there is something new, either the discovered or has been updated. These discoveries need to be learned, and cybersecurity professional needs to know these discoveries so that he or she may remain competitive. We have many cybersecurity training which happen online regarding new hacker’s tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs), which must be learned and understood for one not to fall into hacker’s wits without knowing.  The same goes for new technology, cybersecurity professional need to get trained and get more education regarding the same, so that their organization not to be at a disadvantage against today’s cyber-threats that can destroy and bring an organization down.

Unfortunately, many cyber security professionals are not doing this. This is risky to many organizations because they may face challenges that will require skills that they do not have and will cost the organization a lot as they many incur losses and even face challenges that may bring them down.  Employers need to support the idea of getting more education and knowledge for cyber security employees for the benefit of the organization. It may look like is an expensive task and a waste of money, but when something bad happens to the institution , it will cost the organization more money than just educating  cyber security professional which is not costly at all.

Being certified

ISC2 and COMPTIA are organizations that deal with assessing professionals in cyber security.  They help in identifying what is lacking for one to start learning new skills that they find deficit. They also help in addressing workload by automating most of security and managing services. This is done by providing opportunities for skills development through virtual training by mentoring, networking, and continuous education.

Personal development

For professionals, they need to develop themselves, even when their organization doesn’t provide opportunities so that they can remain competitive and won’t be declared redundant. This is an added advantage to protect their jobs and also for them to get more job opportunities that may improve their wellbeing.  Protecting Organizations data and infrastructure has become critical and essential due to the risks involved.

Therefore, this ever increasing need has also made people to wake up and learn about cyber security, making the career in cyber security become competitive, thus for anyone to remain competitive he or she must continue to personally develop by learning new skills.

There are 2.9 Million Open Cyber Security Jobs in the US

Donald Korinchak, MBA, PMP, CISSP, CASP, ITILv3
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There are 2.9 Million Open Cyber Security Jobs in the US

Companies are finding it very difficult to hire qualified Cyber Security professionals.

Cyber Seek has completed a study that shows that there is a gap of at least 2.9 million cybersecurity jobs.  The most job openings are in Northern Virginia.   Northern Virginia is a hotbed for cyber jobs because of growing areas like Ashburn, VA.  Ashburn is a technology hub that has more fiber optic cable than most places in the world.  Ashburn is filled with technology companies’ non-descript data centers.

California is the 2nd state when it comes to the cyber jobs gap.  Silicone Valley, Microsoft, and hundreds of other technology companies and startups drive the need for cyber experts in California.

Other states like Maryland, Texas, Florida, New York, N Carolina, and Illinois have over 13,000 open jobs each.

Why is it so hard to fill these jobs?

These jobs are tough to fill because many of them have strict requirements.  Government contractors are a significant source of these jobs, and there are often contractual requirements for security clearances and certifications.

In the case that a position requires a security clearance (Like Secret, Top Secret, etc.), the qualified applicant pool is minimal.  The clearance process takes a very long time – up to two years.  Given this, it is 100% necessary to find someone who already has a clearance.  Companies rarely get the option to hire someone without the needed security clearance and wait years for the clearance process to complete.

When the position requires a certification – and they almost always do – the applicant pool is also limited.  IT certifications like CISSP require five years of on the job experience and also a killer exam that less than 50% pass the first time.  Other certifications are also very challenging and require months and months of dedicated study.

Given this, many of these jobs cannot and will not be filled.  Recruiters are actively seeking out prospects on LinkedIn and trying to woo cybersecurity talent with big money job offers and other promises.  Six-Figure Salaries are the norm.

Scarcity will continue

The outlook does not look good for employers trying to fill these jobs.  On the flip side of the coin, cybersecurity professionals have a plethora of choices.  Employers know that they have to keep their cyber people happy because these folks can walk out the door and have a job at another company the next day.

 

 

Countering Cyber Security Attacks

Oliviah Nelson
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Countering Cyber Security Attacks

It is a cry of every person, organization, and even countries that long-lasting solution for cybersecurity is found.  Every day, reports of a growing number of cases concerning breach in cybersecurity are reported, and the risk increases daily due to the increasing number of interconnected devices being added to the internet.  Your information and data are not hundred percent secure in your computer, majorly because, you are exposed to the outside world and you never know who is trying to access your information.

What is cybersecurity?

Cybersecurity is the processes and practices that work together to ensure integrity, authentication, confidentiality, and availability of information.  It is majorly defending against people who want to illegally access, either devices or information and data.  It is protecting your information, data, and infrastructure from illegal access. It also encompasses recovering from failures of the system and unlawful access from attacks by hackers. Cybersecurity has layers of protection from computers, programs, data, and networks. For cybersecurity to success in an organization, there should be complementation between people, processes, and technology involved to assist in defending any cyber-attack.

Training

You need to get to know everything about cybersecurity for you to be able to counter any threat that comes on your way. Knowledge about cybersecurity is required for you to win this war. There will always be a cyber-attack even when strong controls are implemented, therefore, because attackers are always looking for weak places and links; it is possible to prevent these attacks by doing necessary security precautions activities.

Users of the system need to be trained on current cybersecurity precaution measures like the use of strong passwords. Also, users should be advised not to open any attachment that comes from unknown people, and they should treat it as spam. Backing up data after some time is a necessity. In a big organization, there should be people tasked to brief the employees of trending risks, news about cybersecurity, and also necessary controls to counter those current threats.

Compliance and regulatory policies

Europe union’s General Data Protection Regulatory(GDPR) body is tasked to make sure that all organizations meet the privacy and security mandates that GDPR and all other agencies have set so that to counter cybercrimes.

These bodies have lowered the risk that the Internet of things has brought. They make sure that they have a reduced risk of exposing the organization and other institutions by coming up with rules and regulations that must be met to counter cybersecurity challenges.

In case of any successful breach of cyber-attack, an organization should have a well-respected framework to assist and guide on how to go about it. It should be understandable on how to identify, detect, and respond to attacks. It should also guide on how to protect systems and respond to any threat that comes. A great framework can guide on how to recover from successful attacks.

Hiring cybersecurity professionals

Your organization will be more secure from cyber threats if you get a professional cybersecurity person who is well vast with his work. He will assist you in making your systems and devices are protected from challenges concerning cybersecurity. It gives you an advantage over the others because you will be well updated with any risks or concerns and necessary measures and control will be guided by a professional.  You may think it is not worth it, but it is worth everything you have, because, when malware strikes, you may lose everything that you have. It may be costly, but you will get rip benefits at the end.

Security tools

You need to get security tools that will be able to detect and counter any cyber threat that may come from the internet of things. Protection should start from Endpoint devices like computer, printers, routers, and many other devices. There are excellent antiviruses that shield computers from internet attacks. You also need to have firewalls, email solutions, malware protection, and practice DNS filtering.

Top Malware Attacks that Prove IOT Needs Security

Oliviah Nelson
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Top Malware Attacks that Prove IOT Needs Security

You may think you are safe when you put your login credentials to your social media account, but you need to take care of yourself.  Social media and other anything you access online is not safe anymore, do not trust any online platform with your information or data. Always have your doubts every time you access websites in your internet space, never be overconfidence, have some smart cybersecurity strategies that will protect you because cyber hackers are not sleeping, but thinking of a new way to access information that might be of benefit to them.  Many hackers use sophisticated software that many try to connect to virtual machines using network addresses and sockets and any other loopholes, to access workstations online. Ransomware are used to get into network of computers and try to access computer systems and data. They are mostly spread using phishing emails and visiting websites that have ransomware.  We have major cases that have really caused great risks and damages in recent past.

WannaCry Attack

NHS were first victims of this ransomware that gained access to their computer system in 2017 and caused chaos to the whole medical system. This was caused by hackers who used the same ransomware to attack FedEx, a renowned freight company. It found its way into their system and infected all computers in all their branches in 150 countries.  “WannaCry” was being spread by use of email in form of attachment; therefore, as you download the attachment, it finds its way into the computer. When it got into computer, it used to lock files and demand compensation in form of money for it to unlock files.

This ransomware paralyzed the whole NHS for some days, until a 22 year old security guru found a kill switch.

Mirai Malware attack

It is one of the worst attacks that have ever happened in 21st century. It took place in 21st of October in 2016 when no one expected it.  Mirai is a malware that used to skim through the internet of things devices, finding devices to attack.  It was doing this continuously until it successfully accesses component and logins into it then infects it by executing a malware.  Mirai tried 61 different passwords combining with usernames for each computer.

After controlling the device, Mirai used to make a huge botnet army out of the internet of things devices. With this army, massive DDoS attacks were made and successfully took down many websites and internet services causing huge effects and losses since even part of internet went down because of Mirai attack. Many social network sites like Twitter was messily affected. Netflix,CNN, Reddit and many other companies that relied on internet for their services, went down. Mirai attack became one of the biggest cyber-attack that ever happened in the history of Internet of things (IoT). From the attack, we learned that is very important to changed default passwords and username immediately when new device is connected to the internet. In addition, passwords should always be unique per device when connected to the internet. It is necessary for IoT devices to have latest software and firmware to be updated every time to control and reduce vulnerabilities.

Trendnet webcam

This attack happened to camera belonging to TRENDnet company who claimed that they were secure from any attack. Hacker wanted to prove they are far from the truth because he hacked and was able to look through the camera using IP address. It is very important to encrypt IP address of cameras and use strong passwords and username to  protect yourself from hackers.

Cyber Risk Management

Oliviah Nelson
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Cyber Risk Management

Overview of Cyber Risk Management

Cyber Risk Management, is only defined as the combination of policies, personnel, processes, and technologies that aid organizations to achieve a level of exposure in a manner that is cost effective. Cyber-attacks continue getting large and growing with the growing times. This is costing individuals as well as companies millions of money. Organizations all over are struggling with regular monitoring, communication between cyber security and business models.

Entrepreneurs and business moguls foresee Cyber Risk management as the next evolution in security for organizations and enterprise technology risks. This is however specific to organizations that rely highly on digital platforms to run their businesses. This business aspect is brought about by several trends. These include but not limited to the following;

Continued Losses

It reaches a moment, where a company may experience massive losses that may lead to the detriment of the company. Many reasons might contribute to these losses. One primary reason is the growing issue of cyber-attacks that have had a significant challenge for many organizations globally. Criminals are devising new and better ways of conducting their activities in a bid to cause the most extensive damage. It has, therefore, become vital for organizations to come up with a cyber-risk management framework that is intended to mitigate the risks that come with cyber insecurity.

Reduced Security

In a majority of organizations, the only available current security processes are only addressing compliance issues, but fail to capture protectionist strategies against cybercrime. The ever-evolving cyber threats are becoming more popular. Compliance-focused security measures, fail to be objective and do not focus on the core of the problem at hand. Cyber risk management, therefore, comes to be used to improve security in organizations.

Advantages of a cyber-risk management system

Some of the benefits of cyber-risk management is that one; it is aimed at meeting the firm’s objective of cost-effectiveness. If an organization succeeds in managing its risks effectively, it is most likely to lower loss instances. On this front, it can compete effectively with other firms in the economy and hence remain competitive. Secondly, cyber-risk management systems help in achieving the organization’s goals.

Foundation of cyber risk management

To build a strong foundation for cyber risk management, the following five elements are composed of this foundation set up. These elements include one; clear decisions. These decisions buildup on to a well-thought-of risk management framework. Secondly, the risk management system should be cost-effective. This means that it should aim at reducing losses incurred by the firm.

 Besides, the risk management system should relay accurate models of risk and of explicit risk management framework that can roll over into real life. Finally, the management system should be comparable with other risk management systems elsewhere. These systems in different organizations help to strengthen our risk management system.

Elements of an Effective Cyber Risk Management System.

The first element is a Risk. A risk is defined as a function of threats, controls and various impact factors that drive the level of loss exposure. Second, is the Cyber Risk Management system itself. This should be composed of multiple decisions and an implementation framework. The decisions are connected to risk governance that has to be implemented. Execution of the system hence serves as a function of the decisions laid before. Feedback is the third and final element. The feedback should be related to cyber threat intelligence and losses; various metrics regard conditions that affect implementation. Feedback is essential as it aids during the impact assessment of the cyber risk management framework.  

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