Forget Ashley Madison, bigger cyber attacks in the offing

Mumbai: Hacking of online dating platform Ashley Madison is still fresh in our minds, but there is no denying the fact that a bigger cyber attack of higher magnitude could be waiting to hit us anytime soon.

As we look forward to a networked world and download apps of our choices, we make ourselves vulnerable to the hackers’ community. Even a Trend Micro study says that there was a phenomenal increase in cyber attacks in Q2 of 2015 and hackers are leaving no stone unturned to well-equip themselves for a security breach.

They are implementing planned methods, refining their approach and targeting increasingly selective victims to enhance their infection rates and this is mirrored by the exponential rise in the use of many conventional methods of attack, including a 50% rise in the amalgamation of the Angler EK (exploit kit), an increase of 67% in general exploit kit-related threats and CryptoWall ransomware becoming extensively targeted with 79% of infections happening in US.

Much akin to the global financial system, businesses, organizations, governments and people are so interlinked to one another via the internet today that a disruption can create a domino effect which jeopardizes the entire network.

In addition, the social engineering gateways are also becoming a major target of the hackers.
Basic malware components and tools have become so available and simple to use that any fledging cybercriminal can run his own malicious enterprise. During the second quarter, a number of hacks were reported on home routers, major TV networks and even commercial planes, the study says.

In addition to that, more organized law enforcements efforts were seen in this quarter as botnet takedowns and real-world implications were made evident by cybercriminals.

“The networked nature of today’s world, coupled with the increasing intensity and frequency of cyberattacks, means that we might just be a major attack or two away from creating a domino effect that could spread around the globe disrupting business and society,” said Dhanya Thakkar, Managing Director, Asia Pacific, Trend Micro.

At the CloudSec 2015, an annual security conference in Asia Pacific and Europe organized by TrendMicro, coping up with the increasing hacking community was the moot point of the discussion this year. It also concluded that enterprises today are not securing their networks at the same pace at which a hacker is working to breach security systems.

“Everything is evolving to take advantage of today’s new digital reality. Disruptive technologies will produce large, complex and intelligent hyper-connected networks and cybercriminals will certainly follow technology disruption closely to develop and launch attacks in unexpected ways. In such scenario, it becomes even more imperative to have platforms like CLOUDSEC to better comprehend and combat cybercriminals,” said Raimund Genes, Chief Technology Officer, Trend Micro.

The Trend Micro’s Q2 Security Roundup report also revealed that the nature of attacks is evolving – no longer are just corporate networks at risk. Cybercriminals are also attacking Internet-connected physical infrastructure such as petrol stations and automated vehicular systems.

If ongoing studies in transportation security are any indication, attacks may be heading in a direction that could turn hacking into a more physical concern, which immediately calls for stronger solutions to keep such attacks at bay.

The CloudSec 2015 discussed new threats that companies should be vigilant about and countermeasures from around the world today.