There’s nothing plain and simple about cyber security. Attacks happen on a daily basis; attackers are highly motivated, innovative and use increasingly sophisticated equipment. An organization or individual needs to find ways to deal with this on an everyday basis. Among the many threats an organization has to contend with, ransom ware and virus attacks rank high. The issue at hand is how cunning these attacks are. They are designed in such a way so as to completely circumvent the defensive mechanisms of an organization, no matter its size or scale.
Protection of this kind is important because in essence, cyber security safeguards information, data and the sheer reliability of computing assets that belong to or connect through an organization’s network. The purpose of such a security system is not only to identify and defend but also to ensure the threat is followed through its entirety and neutralized successfully. DNS filtering is also an important part of cyber security as it blocks the access of malicious sites.
The regular detection methods often fail when faced with an onslaught of threats. This happens because the methods rely too much on simple indicators or try to take on the threat one at a time. In the case of the former, they don’t paint the entire picture because they are incomplete, in the case of the latter, they are no match for a prolonged sustained attack that happens over multiple devices and steps. Analyzing the audit logs with an efficient system like redshift monitoring is very important.
Sometimes analytics help but what of the understanding of why the attacker does what he does? Not knowing the complete picture comes with drawbacks.
Take for example, the insidious ransom ware. This malware disguises itself in emails and webpages, not attracting attention to itself till the attack. Once attacked, ransom ware extorts a payment, thus giving its creator financial gain. Ransom ware doesn’t allow users to interact, crippling the daily work of a company. It’s quite hard to get out of a situation like that. Not paying the amount can result in anything from a loss of time to a loss of extremely important information. There’s also no guarantee that once paid the threat ends. It could continue, maybe even more virulent than before.
Threat detection is also important because at the heart of its attack is the potential risk of the release of personal information. Sensitive subject matter, employee information including salaries and competitor research may all be part of the release of information. A data leak has repercussions from the bottom to the very top of the food chain in a company. This is what happens in the case of phishing, where attackers try to gain access to information. This could email ids to bank and credit card details.
A cyber security breach can have serious consequences on your business. Time is money and when you lose money in the form of a day’s work, or because you’re fire fighting, the economics can be staggering. Trust erosion is a huge problem too; when companies face cyber-attacks, they stand to lose clients and customers. There is a loss to reputation that needs to be handled too.
Huge financial losses can be incurred when the company under attack is sued for breach of trust. Affected parties will want to recoup and this can prove expensive for the enterprise. Legal fees can drain a business and tie it up for years.
Threat detection works to do two essential things- identify and prevent an attack, and ensure that the attack does not cause further damage. It does this in real time, another key factor to consider. The thing with cyber security breaches is that it’s a game of who’s ahead. Attackers get ahead and gain an upper hand. Or companies stay ahead and protect data and information. Let’s also keep in mind that attacks happen at any time. There are no regular business hours for a threat.
Thanks to a proliferation of IoT devices and attack tools, there’s no telling where the threat comes from. It can be a scary scenario for a family. A threat system works around the clock to protect and cope. This gives an individual and a company a sense of what it’s dealing with and how big it is. Also, corporates are required by law to comply with certain standards of data protection. A threat detection team will ensure that you’re following the rules.