Ever since the Information Technology age came into full swing with the dawn of the internet and long-distance, remote file sharing, Cybercrime has become more prevalent than ever. A lot of people still do not understand the full extent to which cyberattacks and cybercrime affect people’s lives. Aside from ruining people’s lives and their livelihoods, cyberattacks also cause businesses and companies to lose out on hundreds of millions of dollars every year. This is evident from the fact that everyone from big companies to small family-owned businesses are coming under attacks from hackers and cybercriminals. The motives of these cybercriminals in conducting such attacks include –
- stealing precious data, confidential information, intellectual property, technology, etc,
- extortion and blackmail,
- identity theft,
- forgery, or
- downright theft of digital currency, investments, and other valuables.
Because of the widespread nature of the internet today, with every almost every household on the planet owing to a computer, tablet, or mobile phone that is connected to the internet, people are more vulnerable to cyberattacks than ever before. When the internet age started off, very few people had access to it or knew of its existence. Today, this is not the case. In fact, a major chunk of the global economy is completely reliant on information technology and the internet.
This means that not only is the internet being used in a personal capacity by individuals, but also in a very public and global way. Billions of dollars worth of business and transactions are done entirely through the internet. With such a large portion of the global economy being reliant and completely dependant on the functioning of the internet, cybersecurity has come into the limelight.
Everyone from individuals and small businesses to large corporations and governments are beginning to take an interest in cybersecurity. This is because they want to be able to protect themselves and safeguard themselves from all potential cyberattacks that they might face. However, there is a clear lack of expertise in this area that is causing a certain degree of panic and fear amongst those who are really eager to deploy cybersecurity programs into their businesses. Despite the fact that a log of information can be found on the internet, all of this information has to be taken with a grain of salt. This is because such information is either
- completely false and entirely misleading, or
- outdated.
One important point that a lot of people seeking to learn about cybersecurity aren’t aware of is that cybersecurity tactics get outdated very quickly. Hackers and cybercriminals, much like cybersecurity firms, are constantly in a race with each to outdo one another. That is why constantly updating –
- one’s knowledge with the latest cybersecurity techniques,
- cybersecurity programs by hiring people with up-to-date skills,
- keeping firewalls, antiviruses, and other safety mechanisms updated,
- is another incredibly crucial part of being thoroughly protected from cyberattacks.
Are you one such person, organization, or business that is desperate to learn about cybersecurity? Then, you should register for IFERP’s highly anticipated 2020 webinar titled ‘Cyber Virus that took his path with Coronavirus- “A Disaster Journey of Malicious Malware in the ASEAN Countries“‘, which is set to take place on the 15th of August 2020, from 4.30 to 6 PM. As part of this extraordinary Cybersecurity webinar series, participants will be enlightened on all the different types of cybercrime and threats that exist out there in the world today. They will receive an in-depth insight into how, why, and where each of these threats takes place. Lastly, participants will get to know numerous closely guarded secrets that cybersecurity professionals use to implement their cybersecurity programs. Detailed below are some of the popular cybercrimes that participants will learn about, at this conference.
- Theft Of Identity
- Amongst individuals and private citizens, identity theft is one of the most popular of cybercrimes.
- This is because individuals are easier to target and impersonate online.
- When it comes to stealing a person’s identity, there are several methods that cybercriminals use to entice a person into revealing all their details voluntarily.
- There are also other involuntary means by which victims can reveal their personal details.
- When trying to steal someone’s identity, cybercriminals often look to obtain the smallest detail possible and then build from there.
- For instance, they may first try and steal the password for your email account which gives them full access to your email inbox.
- Subsequently, they may try and gain access to their mobile phone since most phones (especially Android, which is the most widely used mobile operating system in the world) are linked to the user’s email account.
- After gaining access to one’s email account and mobile, it is only a matter of time before they can obtain full access to their bank account, credit card information, etc.
- Aside from one’s email account, cybercriminals can also look to gain details including one’s –
- driving license number,
- Aadhar card number (in India),
- social security number (in the United States), and
- other government issues identity details.
- Out of all the upcoming webinars 2020 that you plan on attending, IFERP’s forthcoming webinar on Cybersecurity is a must-attend, if you want to equip yourself with the necessary know-how to prevent the theft of your identity.
- Cyber Blackmail
- Cyber blackmail is carried out when a cybercriminal or group of cybercriminals manage to gain access to compromising information about an individual or a company.
- While this form of cybercrime was most prevalent amongst individuals and private citizens, the tide is swiftly turning towards organizations.
- This is because cybercriminals are realizing that while targeting individuals and blackmailing them could possibly fetch them some money, corporations are easier to blackmail.
- Not only are corporations easier to blackmail, but they are also likely to pay higher amounts of ransom to avoid this information being released for access by the public.
- Cybercriminals have also realized that large corporations have much more to lose as a result of the release of such compromising information than private individuals.
- A brand’s entire reputation, brand image, both existing and future business partnerships and deals, as well as sales, are likely to be affected.
- To know more about the latest cybercrime prevention tactics, tools, and strategies, register for the upcoming Online Webinar Cybersecurity being organized by IFERP, right away!
- Coordinated Bot Attacks
- Huge networks of thousands of bots which as the word implies are ‘robots’ or basically automated programs designed to perform tasks repeatedly are also used extensively by hackers these days.
- These bot attacks are mostly used to spread misinformation and malign individuals, organizations as well as countries.
- The way these bots work is by –
- first creating social networking accounts,
- tweaking their profiles to suit a certain preordained personality,
- finding the target that they are programmed to spam or malign, and
- finally systematically targeting them by spreading misinformation via comments, reviews, dislikes/likes, mentions, etc.
- While the most common botnet attacks are focussed around the above strategy, other attacks focus on spreading harmful, virus-ridden files, programs, and software.
- IFERP’s upcoming cybersecurity webinar will delve deep into the inner workings of botnets, how they work, and how they can be stopped effortlessly.
- These files, programs, and software are aimed at infiltrating the systems and networks of the target and either –
- stealing the confidential data stored in their servers,
- completely destroying their networks,
- reconfiguring their settings,
- inflict DDoS strikes,
- begin spreading misinformation to make it seem like its coming from the target systems, etc.
- Viruses & Malware
- A virus in the cyberworld is nothing but a program or algorithm that is designed specifically for the purposes of corrupting the servers and systems of its host.
- Cybercriminals make use of several methods of delivering or injecting these viruses into the host’s system or server.
- These delivery modes include –
- software programs,
- commonly downloaded mobile applications such as scanner apps, photoshop apps, etc;
- criminals also make use of desktop and mobile games to deliver viruses,
- pirated software that needs to be cracked before usage and access to full-scale features,
- pirated movies, videos, music, photos, e-books, magazines, pdfs, etc.
- A lot of people also get confused with the differences between viruses and malware, owing to the fact that they are both essentially software.
- Additionally, all software and applications are nothing but a collection of programs working in cohesion together to perform certain tasks.
- A virus is often a harmful program that works in the background without the knowledge of the user/users and can only be detected and stopped with the help of a specialized anti-virus program.
- Meanwhile, a malware is something that is more overt in nature and often working under the full observation and knowledge of the user/users.
- Although one might have knowledge of the fact that a malware is functioning within their system, one more often than not cannot stop its functioning by simply exiting or putting a stop to such an application.
- Such programs, whether they are viruses or malware often need the help of a professional cybersecurity expert to be totally and entirely eliminated from the system.
- This is because such programs have failsafe measures in place, meaning that in the event they are removed they will be able to crop up again without being noticed at all.
- IFERP’s Cybercrime & Cybersecurity webinar series will offer more insight into the differences between malware and viruses, as well as the most appropriate preventive measures against such attacks.
The ‘Prevention is Better than Cure’ philosophy cannot hold any truer, than with cyberattacks and cybercrime. Taking the time to safeguard oneself and one’s organization, from all possible threats, is the best way to avoid the loss of identity, personal and confidential data, vital financial information, intellectual property, creations, money, etc. Perhaps the biggest burden of being the victim of a hack or cyberattack is the stress that comes with it. The mental implications of a cyberattack are not addressed much these days. The experts who are set to speak at the forthcoming IFERP webinar will address this in detail.