It is clear that in recent years the field of cybersecurity has made great strides. This is mainly due to technological evolution, which has provided enormously effective tools for threat detection. Unfortunately, despite all these innovative resources, such as machine learning and big data, companies continue to be victims of cyberthreats.
Ddos, exploits kits, code injections… These are some means cybercriminals use to attack their targets. The worst part is that every day they improve their techniques, which has increased the vulnerability of corporate systems.
There are so many recent cases of organizations’ security breaches that the issue of cybersecurity has become the #1 priority for businesses. And it is logical that it is, especially considering the cost that it can have for a company, the data theft or the interruption of its activities as a result of a cyber attack.
Do you want to know more about these techniques and also about the best way to protect yourself from them? Read on and find out more.
What is a cyberthreat?
A cyberthreat is an activity that aims to compromise the security of an information system by altering the availability, integrity or confidentiality of a system or the information it contains.
What are the techniques most used by hackers to launch these cyberthreats?
The authors of cyberthreats carry out their malicious activities in different ways, either by exploiting technical vulnerabilities, using psychological piracy techniques or manipulating social media.
A competent hacker will often choose the technology that is most likely to help him successfully exploit a target’s systems. Most hackers perform extensive searches in order to find and exploit any unsecured network or database. Some vectors that tend to attack most frequently are the following:
Technical vulnerabilities are gaps or defects in the design, implementation, operation, or management of an information technology (IT) system, device, or service.
Psychological piracy consists of methods of exploitation that focus on human vulnerabilities such as negligence and blind trust. Threateners use psychological piracy to induce someone to accidentally give access to a system, network or device.
Some of the most commonly used techniques are as follows:
#1 Denial of Service (DoS) Attack
Denial of service (DoS) is a technique used by hackers to attempt to disrupt the normal activities of a particular host (e.g., a website, a server, a network, an Internet-related device on the server etc.) by overloading it with access requests. The general objective is to make the host inaccessible to requests the legitimate access of users and to render the system in question inoperative.
#2 Exploits
An exploit is malicious code that takes advantage of an uncorrected vulnerability. An exploit kit is a set of exploits that target unsafe software applications. Exploit kits are adapted to look for specific vulnerabilities and run the exploit corresponding to the identified vulnerability.
#3 Code injection
Code injection is a technique that involves inserting malicious code into a computer program by exploiting a bug in the instructions of a program function or in the way the program interprets the data entered. The two most commonly used code injection techniques are cross-site script injection (XSS) and SQL injection (Structured Query Language).
#4 Back Door
A backdoor is an entry point to a user’s system or computer that avoids authentication measures, encryption, or intrusion detection systems. Authors of threats with this remote access can steal information, install malware, or control device processes and procedures. Backdoors are often deliberately created for troubleshooting, software updates, or system maintenance. Hackers can use these legitimate doors for malicious purposes.
#5 Phishing
Phishing is a common technique by which cybercriminals present themselves as a reliable entity to induce many recipients to provide information about themselves, such as login credentials, bank information, and other personally identifiable information.
Phishing is a psychological hacking technique that essentially consists of overwriting emails and text messages. Users fall into the trap as soon as they open malicious attachments or click on embedded links.
How do you keep your systems protected?
Each technique locates and exploits vulnerabilities from different angles, so to protect your systems from each of them, you need to use different strategies. Here are some recommendations that will help you ensure the security of your digital assets:
- Make daily backups of your data.
- Establish “real time protection” systems.
- Use network and endpoint detection technologies.
- Update and patch your software as often as necessary.
- Purchase an effective vulnerability scanner.
- Make users aware of good security practices.
- Create an incident response team.
- Consider integrating technology that allows you to access techniques such as Behavioral analysis.
We have many articles in our blog that talk about the best way to carry out these techniques. If you want to go a little further, you can start with this one or this one.
Remember, the key is to coordinate technology, users and processes efficiently in order to achieve security strategies that really block the attack attempts of cybercriminals. If you want more information about how to achieve this, do not hesitate to contact us. In Gb Advisors we put at your disposal the best in security software, and a team of experts willing to advise you on your projects.
