Cybersecurity breaches can devastate a business, putting at risk the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of the information needed by authorized users. Good cybersecurity prevents unauthorized users from accessing networks, devices, and data. Let’s dive in.
Types of Cybersecurity Breaches
The deep web is the part of the worldwide web that search engines such as Google do not index. Firewalls, paywalls, and other types of protection hide the dark web’s content. The anonymity that the deep web provides attracts cybercriminals, and cybercriminals form the dark web part of the deep web. The dark web consists of peer-to-peer and friend-to-friend networks. It also consists of larger, well-known networks that are run by public individuals and organizations. One well-known dark web network is Tor. The traffic anonymization technique that Tor uses is onion routing.
The dark web is home to ransomware, botnets, darknet markets, Bitcoin services, hacking groups and services, financing and fraud, pornography, terrorism, social media, hoaxes, and unverified content. Naturally, not all of these activities have to do with a company’s cybersecurity, so we’ll list the ones that do.
Ransomware
Ransomware is malware that could threaten to publish your personal data or block your access to it unless you pay the criminal a ransom.
Botnet
A botnet is a network of security-compromised bots. Bots are internet-connected smartphones, computers, and/or Internet of things (IoT) devices.
Darknet markets
Darknet markets are black markets where stolen information, drugs, weapons, and other illicit items are sold over the dark web.
Bitcoin
While not all transactions done using cryptocurrency Bitcoin involve the sale of illegal items, such as your company’s information, the anonymous aspect of cryptocurrency facilitates the anonymous sale of illicit items.
Hacking groups and services
Hacking groups and services provide others with access to information and resources.
Financing and fraud
Criminals on the dark web can do synthetic identity fraud, cash out, dox, phish or take over an account.
Effects of Cybersecurity Breaches
A breach can suddenly stop all progress at a business. Businesses that don’t have a security team in place will scramble for a solution that the company can get critical systems back online. The best in-house IT people may suspect a breach has occurred and try to find out what exactly happened and how bad the breach is. This may take time.
You’ll know you’ve been attacked by ransomware when the criminal contacts you for ransom money. If your company can’t pay it, it’s history. Since a botnet problem would affect all of your company’s devices, your company would have no way to conduct business, and it would be a time-consuming mess to clean up. Your business would be sold if it reaches the darknet markets got ahold of it.
Hacking groups and services break into confidential systems, steal data and cause network damage. Malware alone can make unauthorized purchases using your company credit card, use your computers to attack other computers, alter company files, erase your entire system, and do other malicious things.
What You Can Do
The key to damage control is the speed at which the problem gets resolved. You won’t get the speediest recovery from in-house IT guys. You really need a way to prevent cyber-attacks and quickly recover from one, should a breach occur. You’ll only get this level of security from a team of trained cybersecurity professionals.
A cybersecurity service company would protect your networks, devices, and company information from criminals. Close monitoring would ensure the quickest response, should a cybersecurity breach happen. The quicker the response to a breach, the safer your data will be.
A cybersecurity service company would provide proactive cybersecurity through training, privilege and identity access management, social engineering, and penetration testing. This kind of company would provide a dedicated outsourced Chief Information Security Officer that would control your cybersecurity, end to end. This kind of company would most assuredly make sure that your business meets all cybersecurity regulations. You’ll receive risk assessment, compliance, and certification.
Cybersecurity would prevent financial loss, total loss of your business, and reputational damage. The best way to not have cybersecurity problems is to prevent them and to have an effective quick-response system in place. There’s no better cybersecurity solution than using the services of a cybersecurity service company.
