DDoS attacks have become an annoyance most companies assume they may have to deal with at some point. While frustrating, minor website disruptions from small-scale hacktivist campaigns rarely create substantial business impacts. However, a particularly insidious DDoS spinoff has emerged over the past decade – one aimed at blackmail.This evolutionary milestone stems from what's called Ransom DDoS ...

Companies often go for high-end cybersecurity solutions because dealing with complex problems looks impressive. The appeal of fancy tech and advanced security challenges gives them a sense of achievement and a chance to show off their skills - and says they're serious about staying ahead of cyber crooks.However, this isn't always the best strategy. Many significant risks arise from simple...

In today’s dynamic IT environments, securing and maintaining the integrity of your systems is critical. Fortra’s Tripwire Enterprise is a robust tool designed to help organizations ensure compliance and security by continuously monitoring the configuration and behavior of their IT assets.When deploying Tripwire, a common question arises: should you prioritize monitoring applications, operating...

A firewall is a security device that controls the flow of traffic across a network. A firewall may be a hardware appliance, or it may be a piece of software that runs on a third-party operating system. Firewalls operate based on a set of pre-defined, as well as customizable security rules that inspect network traffic to block or permit access to a...

The upcoming election has brought up conversations about the security of our voting infrastructure. While recent developments have somewhat shifted attention toward more visceral threats such as "death threats against county clerks, polling-place violence, and AI-fueled disinformation," the protection of voting machine security is still a pressing concern.Securing electronic voting infrastructure...

There are ghosts in the machine.Not the poetic kind. I mean literal, running-code-with-root-access kind. The kind that was set up ten years ago by an admin who retired five jobs ago. The kind that still wakes up every night at 3:30 a.m.; processes something no one remembers, and then quietly vanishes into the system logs. Until, of course, something goes wrong—or someone takes advantage of it...

Data breaches continue to cost organizations millions of dollars each year, with costs rising steadily. According to IBM's 2024 Cost of a Data Breach Report, the average cost of a data breach has surged to $4.88 million globally, reflecting the increasing complexity and sophistication of cyberattacks. In the United States, this figure is even higher, averaging $9.8 million per breach, and the...

Most small and midsized businesses trust an IT services partner to help them secure their networks. A few years ago, high-profile cyberattacks targeting MSP vendors Kaseya and SolarWinds thrust the security risk of relying on a complex chain of vendors into the technology media and moved the Department of Homeland Security to issue a statement...

Compliance is a “ticket to entry” for businesses today, and information security risk management (ISRM) makes sure organizations hang on to their ticket. In this blog, we’ll review how ISRM helps organizations not only get compliant but stay compliant.And how Tripwire makes that process automatic.Compliance is a Core Cost of Doing Business TodayWithout adhering to industry-standard data privacy...

Cyber incidents are always going to be present. Regardless of whether you’re working for a startup or a corporation, malicious software can target you and your business. This is why it’s important to work closely with cybersecurity incident response teams and have such protocols in place.The lifecycle of a cybersecurity incident starts way before it happens with good preparation. However, the...

“When the cat’s away, the mouse will play,” the old adage goes. Filings to anti-fraud non-profit Cifas would support that claim, as Insider Threat Database (ITD) reports rose by 14% this past year and are largely attributable to hard-to-monitor work-from-home employees mixed with “increasing financial pressures.” The report details further incidents...

What Is a Host-Based Intrusion Detection System (HIDS)? A host-based intrusion detection system, or HIDS, is a network application that monitors suspicious and malicious behavior, both internally and externally. The HIDS’ job is to flag any unusual patterns of behavior that could signify a breach. By bringing this activity to the team’s attention,...

Ransomware is no longer in its heyday. Evolving, AI-driven cybersecurity tools and global law enforcement efforts have seen to that. But that doesn’t mean ransomware is no longer a threat. In fact, in some ways, the danger is greater than ever. While ransomware attacks are less common than they used to be, the consequences of those that succeed are more severe. Earlier this year, the Ponemon...

Cybercriminals are getting smarter. Not by developing new types of malware or exploiting zero-day vulnerabilities, but by simply pretending to be helpful IT support desk workers.Attackers affiliated with the 3AM ransomware group have combined a variety of different techniques to trick targeted employees into helping them break into networks.It works like this.First, a company employee finds their...