The New Year has arrived and there’s no better way to start than by going through the past and learning from the experiences small and medium-sized businesses have had. Reports suggest that nearly 70 percent of SMBs have faced cyberattacks like phishing and web-based attacks. Even though they made no mistake, they had to experience the hardships of a cyberattack. Some of them saw their businesses close down because they could not bear the expenses of recovering from the attack. Previous year’s cybersecurity trends were all about identity management and data privacy. Privacy is again going to be the priority this year. The predictions are such that every company is going to be a target of cyberattacks. Naturally, SMBs want to protect themselves from these attacks. They are in search of innovative solutions. So, let us know more about some of the cybersecurity trends predicted by the experts.
Zero-trust security models
The model’s approach is very simple. It means that nobody on the Internet is trustworthy. Regular evaluation is very important. It is necessary to keep a regular check on their actions to eradicate the threats if any. The user’s IP address, location, etc. are kept in check. Biggest global enterprises are going to adopt this method of cybersecurity.
Fingerprint authentication will be used for smoother login. This will provide better access to the applications. Companies are going to invest in encryption and prevention of data. The system will calculate a risk score. They calculate it on the basis of the factors which determine the user’s behavior.
In case it finds the score to be crossing the set benchmark, it can discontinue any sort of contact with the user. In some cases, it makes him go through some of the security procedures.
Focus on cloud security
SMBs are interested in cloud adoption, because of the insurmountable benefits of the technology. But this is increasing the risk of security mismanagement and data exposure. SMBs, hence, need to strive to find solutions to protect their data and cloud environments. Also, the benefits of the public cloud are not at all easy to unlock. Most SMBs are going to realize this.
Everything will be intelligence-oriented
One cannot deny how dangerous overdependence on smart machines could be. Intelligence can help in beating any sort of threats that the attackers throw on us. Machine learning is going to be our savior during this time.
Whenever the ML algorithm senses a threat, it executes changes to manage any kind of cyber risks. The trouble for SMBs is that cybercriminals are using machine language as well. This means that your business’ security systems need to be on point all the time. You make one mistake and could lose a lot. This year, focus on replacing traditional cybersecurity tools with ML empowered ones.
Ransomware and cryptomining
Cybercriminals want to steal SMB data. Ransomware has been a major headache for businesses for several years. The malicious software blocks access to data and applications until the ransom money is paid. Ransomware is usually sent through phishing emails via malicious attachments. Remember WannaCry? The ransomware that infected many schools, business, and hospital computers in 2017? Now, cybercriminals target SMBs that can pay the money for the amount of data they stand to lose.
Cryptomining is the process by which cryptocurrency transactions are verified. This year is going to be all about malicious attacks through the process of cryptomining. Cybercriminals are pushing software can start using your computer’s resources to mine cryptocurrency. Cybercriminals find it better than ransomware as it is efficient and lets them play the game for a longer time.
Social media onslaughts against SMBs
One of the scary cybercrime trends for 2019 is the use of social media as a platform for cyberattacks and cyber-extortion. Reports suggest that criminals are focusing more on attacking corporations and brands.
Cybercriminals will spread fake information and news that could cause major damage to SMB’s reputation. Such news is spread through botnets accounts that look legit. These accounts are tough to take down even if you report them. The main motive is to convince the targeted audience that the account belongs to the trusted organization. Then, the victims reveal their personal details to the criminals such as debit card and user login information. Customers could easily be duped when they interact with the company via a malicious account.
The year of security as a part of process design
SMBs have been guilty of deferring radical cybersecurity measures, because of the tendency to believe that they’re not on the radar. The consequence – security is not an inherent aspect of process design.
Slowly and steadily, the mindset of SMBs is changing. They are focusing more and more on cybersecurity. They are keeping it close to their business goals and they are always conscious about it. Security is now a key aspect of each level of process design.
Cybersecurity training
There is a lack of proper cybertraining among SMB workforces. A careless employee could become the cause of debilitating penalties because of a cybersecurity blunder. Traditionally, SMBs tend to consider cybersecurity as an avoidable expense and try for inexpensive alternatives such as canned emails, quizzes, and mandatory training.
The potential threats lurking in 2019, however, make it crucial for SMBs to take things a step further. Continuous cybersecurity for all employees has to be an area of focus. Apart from necessary training, organizations will need to leverage demonstrations, mock drills, and similar consciousness-raising techniques to drive home the point. This year organizations should focus more on training their workers to be aware of cyberthreats, and making them competent to report and combat them.
Engage with cybersecurity experts
SMBs need to work hard on making their systems secure. Unfortunately, it is tough for SMBs to fight their business battles, and in parallel secure their data and systems from cybercriminals. This calls for proactive measures, and for SMBs to engage cybersecurity experts.
Featured Image: Freerange Stock
Pretty obvious information…