October is all about one thing – Yes its, Halloween! If you didn’t know, it is also CyberSecurity Awareness Month. When thinking of October for most of us it is all about trick or treat, ghosts and goblins…but for those of us within the CyberSecurity and IT industry, it is also about raising the awareness and profile of the importance of CyberSecurity.
We thought it would be fun, and informative, to take our readers through some of the ways these ‘holidays’ can coincide – with CyberSecurity threats across the globe probably a scarier thought to most of us these days than Halloween itself, within this article are a few tips to help defend against the ever increasing threat of cyber-attacks.
Trick or Treat? – lots of cyber threats involve tricking the recipient of an email into thinking they MUST do something – this is a real treat for hackers as most people cannot tell – or will not look into – a suspect email. You may be asked for personal information, or confidential information from your organisation. Before you hand anything over, ensure all bases are covered so that you aren’t placing your data in the wrong hands!
Horror Stories! – scary movies would be the least of your worries if your organisation was under threat from hackers. A perfect example is Ransomware -they can lock your computers and demand money be paid in exchange for you to be able to access your data again. And this is only the beginning. Make sure you have a secure back up of all company data – now!
Vandalism! – Halloween is popular for the old-time prank of egging or throwing toilet paper over somebody’s house – usually the neighbour that doesn’t want to join in the fun! This is usually how hackers will operate as well. According to Mike Ogden of Navex Global, ‘Hackers will probe network defenses looking for the most vulnerable organisation’, and when they find you defenceless on a street of fully ‘decorated’ houses, they will strike! The lesson here is to go above and beyond when it comes to cyber defenses!
Who has the best costume? Halloween is usually a time to pick a scary character and dress up in the best costume you can find. Hackers will do the same thing – often disguising emails/text messages as someone you know, or an organisation you have already have a relationship with. According to ITGovernance, the best ways to detect a phishing email is to start by checking the email address: a simple google search can confirm if the organisation’s email is matching the one sent to you. You must also be on the lookout for emails that come from an alleged reliable source but are poorly written, or containing suspicious links or attachments that you must open in order to obtain information from you. Spotting a hacker’s disguise is one of the best forms of defence!
CyberSecurity is of utmost importance, not just during CyberSecurity awareness month, but all year round – by using different
strong passwords and ensuring a back up of all data, only then can we begin to defend our data more securely. Remember when you open an email – check the email address, check the spelling – and think twice before actioning anything that may give the sender important data.
Written by Aimee Martin, Executive Assistant.
