Increase in cyberattacks: how to be better protected?

During the second week of April, Google detected 18 million malware and phishing emails linked to COVID-19. And that’s in addition to the 24 million daily spam messages related to Coronavirus. Since the WHO declared the pandemic state on March 11, IBM X-Force has seen an increase of more than 6,000% in spams related to the virus. The current context of fear of this pandemic is ideal for cybercriminals who use the virus as a way to deceive Internet users.

Companies as targets

Your employees are working from home, in a new workspace that is probably less secure than the office they are used to, and they become more vulnerable to security attacks.

Some of the security flaws related to remote work include insufficiently secure storage solutions, installation of applications or software that are not approved by the company and therefore risky, or the use of unsecured personal hardware (forget about your personal flash drive!).

These are all ways for hackers to access confidential data or company systems.

Phishing on the rise

Most attacks are phishing attacks. You receive an email related to the coronavirus, with a link redirecting you to a fake page, the goal being to extract your personal information.

Whether it is information related to the pandemic, sent by a false alias of WHO, false HR requests related to the organisation of remote work, the sale of a “miraculous cure” or a fake relief fund, your computer can get infected in just a click.

For example, Android applications have been developed to track the spread of the virus around the world. Be careful, as some are corrupted by a Trojan horse or ransomware.

In the recent weeks, a number of domain names linked to the virus were created, more than half of which are believed to be linked to malware. Up to a thousand websites using the domain name “Covid” or “Corona” have been created daily.

Source: Check Point Research

But according to Thales, more than 50% of these sites aim to introduce malware. Expect to receive links to these sites in your mailbox.

How to protect yourself?

Employers

1.Educate your employees

Employers! Make sure your employees are aware that they should not click on a link or open an attachment without being sure of its content and of who the sender is. Educate your employees and explain to them that they risk being redirected to another site without their knowledge and having their personal data stolen.

2.Install encryption tools and use MFA

Verify that you have installed encryption tools for all employees and use a multi-factor authentication (MFA) solution. Such a solution will require your employees to provide at least two credentials to validate their identity, whether in the form of a password, physical token, or numeric code, etc.

3. Provide support

Finally, provide your teams with remote assistance in case of any problems. Make sure they know who to contact in case of need, and define a clear procedure in case of incident.

Employees

1.Secure your Wi-Fi connection

Employees, it is your job to ensure that your domestic Wi-Fi connection is secure. Remember to change the default password for your router. In order to secure your Wi-Fi network even more, you can also deactivate the SSID, in order to hide the network name. It will be hidden from other users, but you will have to configure each new connection by re-entering the information.

2.Check your security software

Also, make sure that your computer's anti-virus is enabled and check that all security software is up to date.

Make cyber security your top priority!

EuroDNS offers various cybersecurity solutions related to domain names, from SSL certificates, WHOIS identity protection and DNS services with DNSSEC.

The more proactive you are in limiting cyber threats, the less likely you are to fall victim to them. So protect yourself and take preventive measures today.

Make cybersecurity your top priority!

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash