Recently, I saw a statistic that made me want to cheer. According to Microsoft’s Security Intelligence Report (SIR), ransomware encounter rates declined by approximately 60 percent between March 2017 and December 2018.
Microsoft attributes this drop in ransomware crime to improved detection, along with better response mechanisms, thus making it harder for criminals to profit from ransomware attacks. Simply put, cybersecurity has made ransomware a less attractive business proposition for criminals.
Invario has improved our detection by using advanced endpoint protection, which takes traditional anti-virus to the next level. Threats are monitored 24x7x365 through a U.S.-based security operations center, and new virus strains can be detected earlier than with a traditional anti-virus software.
We also offer a fully featured platform for backup, recovery, and business continuity that provides a better response mechanism in the case of an attack and works with local, virtual, and Cloud environments. With these tools, we guarantee our customers will never have to pay a ransom to get their data back.
Look Out for New Threats
Now for the bad news, the criminals aren’t going away, they are simply changing their tactics. Unlike ransomware, phishing rates continued to rise throughout 2018. According to Microsoft’s SIR, “The share of inbound emails that were phishing messages increased 250 percent between January and December 2018.” In November, more than half of the inbound emails Microsoft reviewed were phishing emails.
A sophisticated form of phishing is Business Email Compromise (BEC), also known as CEO fraud. The FBI reports that businesses lost $1,297,803,489 to BEC crime in 2018.
With BEC, the criminal impersonates an executive or authority figure within your organization and requests something of value such as a wire transfer, sensitive data, or gift cards.
I’ve seen BEC emails firsthand, and they can appear very convincing. A good rule of thumb is to adopt a “four eyes” approach, meaning that any request for money or valuables should be reviewed by at least two people within your organization. For more tips on how not to fall victim to spear-phishing, see my January newsletter.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I’m celebrating the drop in ransomware as a win. All of the cybersecurity efforts across the IT and business community worldwide have had a positive impact in the fight against crime and I’m proud to be a part of it.
Feedback
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Dave Wilson
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