Dealing with the aftermath of ransomware attacks is like Russian roulette. Submitting the ransom might seem like it’s the sole option for recovering locked data . Ransomware also continues to evolve as a threat category within the past year, with old names like REvil rearing their heads and new players like Black Basta emerging in 2022. Malicious actors employ ransomware to extort money (at least...

What Is Network Security? Network security is a broad field, encompassing various processes, policies, rules, standards, frameworks, software, and hardware solutions. Its primary goal is to protect a network and its data from various threats, including intrusions and breaches. A network security program typically utilizes a combination of access controls, application security tools, virus and...

Mobile device use is pervasive , and has eclipsed traditional computing. We often hear how various malicious mobile apps are released into circulation. For these reasons, mobile app development needs to focus on cybersecurity just as much as it does on functionality and flexibility, if not more so. It’s an inevitable aspect of app development that must be taken more seriously, as the very real...

The healthcare sector has become a popular target for cybercriminals and is one of the most targeted industries by cyber criminals. In 2022, 324 attacks were reported in the first half of the year. As bad actors continue to target the healthcare industry, cybersecurity experts and healthcare administrators should be aware that attacks are frequently impacting smaller companies. These numbers point...

The holiday season has arrived, and cyberattacks are expected to increase with the upcoming celebratory events. According to The Retail & Hospitality Information Sharing and Analysis Center (RH-ISAC) 2022 Holiday Season Threat Trends and summary report, ransomware and phishing attacks are expected to increase in retail. With the FIFA World Cup 2022, many cybersecurity experts have advised...

In the world of security, authentication, and authorization methodologies are foundational aspects of defense. Authentication techniques protect against unlawful entry to systems through the verification of a user, and authorization either grants or denies the verified user’s access level. For example, if an employee from the finance department requests records from the administration department...

Identity governance, also known as access governance, is an integral part of any enterprise data protection and compliance framework. Seamless and timely access to required systems or resources can significantly increase employees’ productivity and performance. However, excessive privileges or unmonitored user access can often lead to internal and external cybersecurity threats, such as insider...

Recently, Tripwire held its Energy and NERC Compliance Working Group virtual event. Tripwire has customers spanning the entire energy industry, including small, medium, and large city municipals, cooperatives, and investor-owned utilities and energy companies. The information shared in these sessions offered valuable insights for both very mature customers, as well as new customers that are still...

In the business world, compliance means making sure that companies of all sizes are meeting the standards set by regulatory or oversight groups in various laws and standards, such as HIPAA , PCI DSS , SOX , and GDPR . Sometimes, an organization will self-impose its compliance by adhering to guidance and frameworks from organizations such as NIST, ISACA, ISO, and other advisory bodies. When it...

In response to increasing societal concerns about the way businesses store, process, and protect the sensitive data they collect from their customers, governments and standardization organizations have enacted a patchwork of regulations and laws. Some of these are generic regulations (CCPA, GDPR), while others are industry specific (SOX, NERC, HIPAA, PCI DSS ). These regulations impact literally...

Change detection is easy. What is not so easy, is reconciling change. Change reconciliation is where most organizations stumble. What was the change? When was it made? Who made it? Was it authorized? The ability to answer these questions are the elements that comprise change management. Historically, the haste of accomplishing a task consisted of a sysadmin moving full-speed ahead to satisfy the...

Have you ever walked up to an ATM after another person finished with the machine only to find they left it on a prompt screen asking, “Do you want to perform another transaction?” I have. Of course, I did the right thing and closed out their session before beginning my own transaction. That was a mistake an individual made by careless error which could have cost them hundreds of their own currency...

The third quarter saw some major developments across the privacy space. In the U.S., we saw a federal bill for comprehensive privacy achieve more than ever before, children’s privacy proved to remain a top concern, and the Federal Trade Commission formally began its heavily criticized “Magnuson-Moss rulemaking” process. Not to be outdone, the international community saw marked progress as well...

If you were to take a look at the cybersecurity news cycle, you’d be forgiven for thinking that it’s only large enterprises with expansive customer bases and budgets that are the most vulnerable to attacks. But that’s not entirely true. Even if it’s at a much smaller scale, small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) still have stores of sensitive information that’s appealing to bad actors — and...

As budgets start to tighten for countless businesses concerned about the potential financial winter that many are predicting, security teams across the world are reviewing where best to place their investment to ensure they get the best “bang for their buck”. With that in mind, now might be time to explore some key areas where I see organisations spending wisely to deliver great results on a...

We all know that it is a question of when you will be compromised and not if you will be compromised. It is unavoidable. The goal of CIS Control 17 is to ensure that you are set up for success when that inevitable breach occurs. If an organization is neither equipped nor prepared for that potential data breach, they are not likely to succeeded in responding to the threat. Key Takeaways One...

In recent years, cyber espionage has been growing in magnitude and complexity. One of the most common targets is Industrial Control Systems (ICS) within critical infrastructure sectors. With many organizations relying more heavily on ICS networks, there has been an increase in threats and cyberattacks aimed at these systems. Not only do these attacks have an economic impact, but they also put...