As the IT supervisor of a gourmet food retailer, my job is to prevent and manage cyber threats to the company. With its three stores, online e-commerce marketplace, and more than 35,000 customers with approximately $1 million in sales each year, the company can have many different cyber threats from a multitude of areas. In this post, I will describe five sources of digital threats to the company, five digital systems that could be exploited, and five recommendations to better protect the company’s assets.

 

Know your enemy: What are 5 sources/types of potential digital threats to your organization.

1. Ransomware – Ransomware comes in many different forms, but it all has the same concept: you have to pay a ransom to keep your data. Ransomware is typically the final step in a cyberattack process. The payment request is deployed after the attacker gains access to the victim’s network and data. The first step into the company’s network and data is usually a form of phishing, social engineering, or web application attack. As soon as the cybercriminal has access to the company’s data, they can begin to deploy ransomware everywhere they are able to reach in the company.

2. Security Misconfigurations – Security misconfigurations arise when security settings are not defined or implemented, or when they are set at the default settings. Often, this means the security configuration settings do not comply with the industry standards, such as CIS Benchmarks or OWASP Top 10. Misconfigurations are often seen as an easy target, since they can be easily detected by cybercriminals. Some of the most common misconfigurations are unpatched systems, broken access control, sensitive data exposure and vulnerable and outdated components.

3. Credential Stuffing – Credential stuffing happens when an attacker uses stolen credentials from one company to access user accounts in another system or at another company. The credentials are typically obtained from the dark web or in a data breach. This type of cyber threat simply involves logging into a victim’s account with their own username and password. Unfortunately, because this kind of attack is so easy, it is becoming more and more popular. The success of these attacks relies on personal password reuse by an organization’s employees. A 2019 Google survey found that 65% of people reuse passwords on multiple accounts, if not all of them. This only makes the likelihood of an attack higher.

4. Social Engineering – Social engineering is not necessarily a digital system compromise, but instead the compromise of a person, which causes them to unknowingly release confidential information to a cybercriminal. Typically, this is the first step in a multistep cybercriminal attack. Social engineering most commonly takes place in an email phishing attack, where the victim is tricked into downloading malware or giving up credentials. The most concerning factor is that many social engineering and phishing incidents are discovered by external parties. This means that when employees are falling for the cybercriminal’s tricks, they usually don’t even realize it.

5. Phishing – Phishing can happen in many ways, but it comes down to a common premise: a cybercriminal pretending to be someone you know with a message that looks real and urgent, and either asking to click a link or asking for some information (like log in credentials for an account). Maybe it looks like it is from your bank asking for your account credentials, or your manager asking for a password. Unfortunately, it is easy to spoof logos and create fake email addresses that can look real. If the victim acquiesces to the request, it can be like giving the hacker the key to the front door to the company’s data.

 

Know yourself: Identify at least 5 digital processes, systems, and/or functions your company has in place.

1. Email Accounts – Email accounts could be exploited by a cybercriminal using the emails (either by phishing, social engineering, etc.) to get into more digital areas of the company.

2. E-commerce Site – The e-commerce site could be exploited by hacking the site to gather sensitive information from both the consumer and the company.

3. Security System – Whether for the company’s data, the retail stores, or the website, the security systems could be compromised by cybercriminals, especially if they are older or in the default settings.

4. Store Payment Systems (Point of Sale) – Cybercriminals can do many acts with a Point of Sale, like steal customer’s data, change prices to their advantage, and even make it that their purchase goes onto the next customer’s card.

5. Databases (Private Dedicated Servers and Cloud Servers) – Many Private Dedicated or Cloud Servers, can be hacked through phishing, weak passwords, etc., and both company and customer information can be stolen and exploited.

 

Develop your strategy: As the chief technology executive, make 5 recommendations that your company should adopt to be more safe, secure, and reliable.

1. Educate employees – One of the biggest things we can do in the company is to educate our employees about what they should do to prevent digital threats from penetrating into the company. Requiring cybersecurity training and creating an atmosphere of encouraging security and digital safety can help prevent digital threats in the future.

2. Regularly Update Security Systems – Not only for the security systems in the company, but also updates for computers, phones, and other devices to prevent breaches. Even missing small updates for a computer can create a hole in the security system that an intruder can use to gain access.

3. Use Strong Passwords – Making sure all passwords are strong (and also not used repeatedly) can make the company’s digital security even stronger.

4. Secure Wi-Fi Networks – Wi-Fi networks are often a common entry point for cyberattacks, so we should take steps to secure them, from using strong passwords, using the latest encryption standards, and even hiding the network to make it less visible to attackers.

5. Conduct Regular Security Audits – From within offices, to the e-commerce sites, to within the stores, we should be doing regular security audits. This can ensure that there are not any holes in digital security, and can even help make sure we stay compliant with laws and regulations.

In summary, although there are many threats to our company, there are also many ways to prevent and combat these attackers. From educating our employees and keeping a strong security, we can and will have a safe digital environment.

Sources:

https://www.forbes.com/advisor/business/common-cyber-security-threats/\

https://www.malwarebytes.com/phishing

https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/small-businesses/cybersecurity/phishing

https://cyberguy.com/security/cybercriminal-access-to-your-email-address/

https://thehackernews.com/2023/08/cyberattacks-targeting-e-commerce.html

https://www.securityweek.com/pos-flaws-allow-hackers-steal-card-data-change-prices/

https://proton.me/blog/cloud-hacked

https://www.portnox.com/blog/security-trends/five-easy-tips-to-help-employees-prevent-cyber-attacks/

https://futuramo.com/blog/top-ten-ways-businesses-can-increase-digital-security/

https://contabo.com/blog/how-to-protect-your-server-from-getting-hacked/