Top IT Threats
ComputerWorld recently released a rundown of today’s top nine IT cyber threats. From cyber crime to cyber war, it’s clear that while many of the concepts are the same, the scale and risks are growing. IT professionals as well as the average user must stay at the top of their game in order to ensure their professional networks and personal computers alike remain safe.
- Cyber crime syndicates ? While there’s much talk of the lone wolf terrorist or lone malicious attacker, the most effective cyber operations are conducted by organized groups. The world of cybercrime is now a “multi-level, service oriented industry” making it a much more complex threat than many companies realize.
- The mom-and-pop cyber crime small business ? These are generally the biggest threat to individuals, and they’re responsible for many of the spear phishing attacks going after credit card numbers and personal information. At the end of the day, they want money.
- Hacktivists ? Think of them as hackers with a cause, but at the end of the day, many are still after money.
- Intellectual property theft and corporate espionage ? Probably the number one threat across the defense industry, it’s no secret that cyber criminals and state actors (ahem, China and Russia) are waging a constant and all-too-successful war against American business and defense.
- Malware ? Malware is a sophisticated operation, and both the organization and speed with which malware is being created makes it almost impossible for most IT professionals to stay ahead of the curve.
- Botnets ? Much like malware, the problem here is scale. With so many botnets and so many affected computers, it can be tough to keep up with the intrusions.
- All-in-one malware ? Another defense industry problem, this is sophisticated malware that will break into websites and affect more victims.
- The Wild Wild Web ? Telling the legitimate from the malicious online is getting more difficult, and offensive operations are growing increasingly sophisticated.
- Cyber warfare ? A continual struggle to define and combat, the cyber rules of war, and the players are still being determined. The implications across industries ? from defense to industry and both government and private sector ? are severe.
