A Complete Guide to Managed Cybersecurity Services

The cyber-world is changing faster than ever, and it leaves organizations, individuals, and small businesses vulnerable to cybercrimes. They need to adopt a comprehensive cybersecurity plan to protect themselves against risks and threats. Implementing and testing controls, and regularly maintaining and monitoring the security management programs using reliable and trustworthy managed cybersecurity services can help mitigate risks and potential cyber-attacks.

Has your business ever dealt with malware, virus infection, or cyberattacks? Cyber attacks’ damage to companies ranges from unauthorized access through a relatively simple attack to a large-scale breach of critical data that can result in prolonged downtime. It damages your company’s reputation and the confidence of your investors and customers. Do not let a cyber incident destroy your organization. Managed services from a cybersecurity company can help you optimize your organization’s security posture.

Managed cybersecurity services are a crucial component of any organization’s cybersecurity strategy. This article will discuss managed cybersecurity services, why it is essential for organizations, and how an excellent cybersecurity company benefits you. So, let’s get started.

What are Managed Cybersecurity Services?

Third-party providers give managed cybersecurity services to administer an organization’s security processes. These small business cyber security services implement, monitor, maintain and enhance an enterprise’s cybersecurity posture. Managed cybersecurity service providers (MSSP) provide security services ranging from setting up infrastructure via security management or incident response. Some services providers specialize in specific areas, while others give complete outsourcing of an organization’s information security program.

As security threats and cyber incidents are becoming increasingly common, many businesses are partnering with managed cybersecurity service providers in addition to their existing small business cybersecurity programs. They provide expert monitoring and management, protecting data and hardware from potential cyber-attacks. MSSP manages and implements security programs for organizations. These include

• Managed firewalls
• Intrusion detection
• Blocking viruses and spam
• Implementing upgrades or system changes
• Setting up a Virtual Private Network (VPN)
• Security and compliance audits
• Security assessment and reporting
• System monitoring
• Penetration testing
• Security analytics

Moreover, a good cybersecurity company helps you monitor the security devices and systems in a workspace. Most MSSPs provide a wide range of cybersecurity small business services, such as

• Log monitoring and management
• Device management
• Vulnerability management
• Consultancy services

Managed cybersecurity service providers generally offer a whole suite of managed IT services. They typically provide cyber security to help organizations with their basic security needs.

Why are Managed Cybersecurity Services Necessary?

Organizations need to consider the importance of managed security services to protect themselves from cyber-attacks. MSSPs can be a valuable resource for companies that want to maximize their security but do not have the resources to manage an in-house cybersecurity team. These services provide strategies and designs to give a robust security posture.

MSSPs shield organizations against cyber threats and strengthen their cyber defense. They use a multilayered defense strategy to protect your organization from different angles. It means they do not only safeguard you from external threats, such as network intrusions or malware, but also security from the security breaches caused by employees accidentally or deliberately.

Opting for managed cybersecurity services provide

• Information security assessment_ Examine the maturity of your company’s information security programs, identify their weaknesses and gaps, and provide opportunities for improvement. Choose a good cybersecurity company and identify the risks to your business.
• Data governance_ These services help you handle a large volume of data and enhance your cybersecurity posture through efficient data management.
• Advanced security solutions_ These include anti-malware software, managed firewalls, web filtering, intrusion detection, multi-factor authentication, access management, and patch management.
• Dedicated security analysts_ MSSPs provide specialists who detect critical flaws in your IT infrastructure and recommend security measures to mitigate the risk of a security breach.
• Security information and event management (SIEM)_ tracks security-related incidents in your IT environment, such as suspicious downloads or failed logins. It then examines the incident and creates comprehensive security reports.
• Incident investigation and response_ If a security breach occurs, security experts immediately remediate the threat, assess the damage, and find the attack’s origin.
• Threat hunting_ Security experts proactively identify and isolate evasive threats for existing security solutions.
• Risk and compliance_ They align your GRC operations to business performance drivers using frameworks such as PCI/DSS, GDPR, NIST, NYDFS, ISO, and others with IT security service programs.
• Penetration testing and phishing_ Effective security comes with a clear understanding of your IT infrastructure’s critical flaws and vulnerabilities. Phishing assessment and penetration testing protect your organization against security threats.
• Security awareness training_ Educate your organization’s employees about your security posture’s strengths and weaknesses, and empower them against hackers. Good managed cybersecurity service providers ensure your employees stay ahead of cybercriminals.

Why is it Important to Choose an Excellent Cybersecurity Company?

A robust cybersecurity system is crucial for any organization in today’s digital landscape. Excellent cybersecurity for small business companies can help protect sensitive information and assets from potential cyber threats, prevent data breaches and cyber-attacks, maintain privacy and comply with regulations, minimize business downtime and financial losses, and enhance the organization’s overall security posture, reducing the risk of cyber incidents. In short, it helps to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of critical information and systems.

There is a wide range of managed cybersecurity service providers today. Identifying your organization’s security needs and engaging a good cybersecurity company to address them is essential. Before partnering with a provider dealing with cybersecurity for small business, security and IT teams need to plan carefully around which operations need to be outsourced. Once you have mapped out your requirements, it is necessary to research the best service providers and shortlist a few of them. Meet them and check customer feedback before hiring them. Because a good cybersecurity company is one that

• Optimize controls
• Improve governance
• Reduce the TCO of the risk
• Optimize security posture
• Strengthen security processes
• Reduce legal risks
• Increase profitability
• Provides scalability

Why Choose Protected Harbor for Managed Cybersecurity Services?

Protected Harbor provides managed cybersecurity services and cyber resilience regardless of the size of your organization. Our cybersecurity services provide organizations with the most effective tools, solutions, services, processes, policies, and practices to protect their intellectual properties, security posture, and financial assets. We provide cybersecurity assessments that help you understand your security posture, detect vulnerabilities in them, and set the baseline for improvement.

Moreover, our managed services include multi-factor authentication, endpoint protection, next-generation firewall, device encryption, and email security. We provide a robust solution to defend against cyber-attacks and let you drastically reduce implementation efforts, cost, and maintenance requirements. With our team of highly skilled experts, we allow our clients to build cyber resilience, innovate safely, and grow with confidence. Contact us today for an IT audit.

Why Every CEO Should Understand the Basics of Cybersecurity

With the growing advancement in technology, their risks are also increasing. Online frauds, money laundering, and data leaks are becoming significant problems in the digital world and online businesses. Cybersecurity is becoming critical for smaller and larger corporations alike. Security threats and cyberattacks negatively impact businesses, and according to cybersecurity statistics, the majority of the CEOs are not taking appropriate actions against cybersecurity issues and risks associated with them. Security breaches and data loss cause damage to a company’s reputation and can increase the risk of cyberattacks.

It has become crucial for business owners to take steps to secure their organizations. No matter which industry, every CEO should know these five things about cybersecurity and its threats:

Cyber Risk Management

In the advanced world, every company relies on technology, which means there are more chances of cyberattacks.  For CEOs, it is necessary to know all the risks and damage that cybercriminals can cause to their business. It would be wrong to say that the larger companies are entirely safe from cyber-attacks and smaller companies are not the target value for anyone. According to cybersecurity statistics, hackers have attacked half of the small businesses in the United States in the last 12 months. So CEOs should take precautions to improve cyber risk management depending on the nature of their business.  They need to come up with appropriate contingency plans and correct preventive measures to protect their company from potential threats from cybercriminals.

Implement Data protection and System Protection in a Better Way

For a CEO, it’s his responsibility to keep in touch with the data and IT team to understand better what’s going on in the company and how. It’s unnecessary to have all the technical details, but one should be aware of the type of data they store, where and how it is stored, and at which level the data is encapsulated and secure.

There is a need to protect the system from malware to secure the data. Keep your IT team always prepared to take measures against cyber-attacks and update the systems whenever required because a security threat can enter your plan anytime.

Aware your Employees of Cybersecurity

Train your employees about security threats and breaches, and then put them in a situation and see how they respond to these kinds of attacks. CEOs should train them to keep the company’s information private. According to cybersecurity statistics, 60% of data breaches occur due to former or current employees. For data safety, try to limit employees’ access to it and secure the information. It’s also recommended to change passwords regularly and make separate accounts for each employee.

Avoid Reputational Damage

Cybersecurity threats are becoming significant challenges for CEO and business owners. Cybercriminals are attacking corporations in a sophisticated way, but data loss and breaches cause a tremendous impact on a company’s reputation. Security threats and cybercrime are increasing so fast that it is not only the responsibility of the IT team to handle such incidents, but these are the leaders who should understand the risk and be with the team to plan a quick and effective recovery from cyber-attacks.

Stay in touch with the cybersecurity issues.

Lastly, a CEO must be aware of the latest issues related to cybersecurity because hackers are constantly discovering new ways to attack the systems and get control over them. So the business owner should stay up-to-date on what’s going on in the cyber world.  They should take recommendations from the professionals or hire an expert in the cybersecurity domain for their organization. CEOs should form a strategy with experts and IT Teams according to the latest trends and plan to stand against cybercriminals.

Summary

In Today’s world, most of the business is done online, and the cybersecurity threat has become an issue that needs to be sorted out. Most CEOs are not aware of the cybersecurity threats and risks their company faces every day, and many are aware of them but do not take action or do what needs to be done. Although there’s not any single and optimized solution for this problem, these are some steps that CEOs need to follow and ensure that their organizations are fully prepared to deal with such threats and challenges.

It’s challenging for small to medium-sized companies to build their own IT infrastructure and have a dedicated IT team focusing on cybersecurity. What business can partner with an IT service provider who will manage your infrastructure for you, which will also save you costs. Protected Harbor is among the top IT and cybersecurity providers in the US. We guarantee customer satisfaction with a dedicated tech team that is available 24×7, 99.99% uptime, remote monitoring, remote desktops, and modern cybersecurity solutions. We’ve been helping several CEOs in their day-to-day operations because we understand their business and what they want. Take control of your future, be cyber secured, contact us today!

Wellstar Health System Reveals Data Breach

Wellstar Health System announced on Friday afternoon that its email system had been hacked.

Well, it happened again. A data breach occurred at yet another healthcare firm. This time, it was Wellstar Health System. Unauthorized attackers obtained access to two email accounts two months ago, the organization discovered on Friday. Through those email accounts, gained access to patients’ health care information and it was exposed, including patient laboratory information. They missed the 2021 Healthcare Data Breach Trend Report from Protected Harbor at HIMSS.

Emails are one of the most common ways that hackers access sensitive information. This is because people often use their work email for personal purposes, so it is easier to get access to it. Hackers can use different methods and tricks to an email account. They might trick health workers into sharing their passwords, or they could send them a virus that tries to steal employee passwords from company computers.

If you are reading this, you understand that it’s essential to keep any critical emails secure when handling sensitive information. After all, Patient Health Information (PHI) and Electronic Health Records (EHR) can earn a few hundred dollars each on the dark web. That means healthcare employees are more targeted by hackers. And still, many healthcare organizations are not taking the proper steps to protect company email from hacking.

This article will go over how to defend yourself against important threats and what email security precautions you should take.

Install the Right Software

One of the essential email security precautions you can take is installing the right software to protect your emails. Many software options offer various levels of protection, so find out which one will work best for your needs. If you’re in healthcare, consider higher levels of security because you have a lot more sensitive information. Healthcare IT staff may also want to invest in Malwarebytes, a well-rounded antivirus solution, to provide another layer of protection against hacking.

Spam Hero is a software that looks for spam scans messages for infections before it reaches the Stopping malware emails before reaching an inbox can help keep hackers out of any sensitive documents you may come across in the future. Think how many emails with attachments are sent each day; if they were all scanned before recipients could open them, this would significantly decrease the chances of hackers getting a hold of sensitive information like PHI and EHR.

Monitor Your Inbox Activities

One of your email inboxes has received ten emails in one day. However, you only get about two a day, you do not remember sending out any emails that day, and it’s a Sunday. Is there a cybersecurity breach on your network? It could indicate that someone is trying to gain access to company information and has begun by accessing people’s email accounts. Monitor account activity regularly, and if you notice anything suspicious, have a playbook to implement additional security measures if you see something odd. Set up a new email address if necessary and measures such as multifactor authentication or changing all passwords. It is also important to routinely change passwords, even when there is no evidence of a breach; no system is perfect, and it’s better to be safe than sorry!

Educate your Employees & Staff

As exposed recently, hackers find new ways to trick healthcare employees into giving up sensitive information. Here are four easy things every HCIT department can do to improve their company’s employee cyber safety awareness:

1. Encourage employees to come forward if they suspect an email of being bogus.
2. Educate employees on what dangerous emails might look like. A recent study showed that over a quarter of doctors could not identify a malware email.
3. Tell your employees not to open attachments unless 100% confident that it is a trusted source. Installing a filter those auto-checks attachments is even better.
4. Have an Email Password Checklist for all of your employees.

We all have complex emails, but make it a requirement, set up failsafes to avoid re-used passwords, and help make it easier for your staff with some tips and how-tos. These simple tips will help protect against email cyber-attacks.

Use Two-Factor Authentication

Two-factor authentication is a great way to add an extra layer of security to your online accounts and protect yourself against email cyber-attacks. 2FA prevents hackers from simply guessing passwords and lets you focus on protecting other healthcare network vulnerabilities. By implementing these simple steps, you can protect your business and its data without adding too much time or hassle into everyday workflows.

One of the easiest ways to protect yourself from hacking is to turn on two-factor authentication. 2FA will help ensure your information is more secure, and it doesn’t take much more time or effort than what you were doing before.

You might think it’s unnecessary to use two-step verification when you already have high-end cybersecurity software, but that is not true. Software and two-step verification work together to make sure your information is safe. A bad actor can bypass a security measure, so it’s necessary to have other protections in place too. This is where software and 2FA come in handy again.

Use Encryption

One of the most effective ways to protect yourself from hackers is by using encryption. Encryption scrambles the content of your email so that only you and the intended recipient can read it. It means that if a hacker does manage to intercept your email, they won’t be able to understand what it says. Even if they could break the encryption, any sensitive information in your email will be rendered indecipherable.

One such solution is ProtonMail, a secure email service that encrypts all of your messages by default. The only person who can decrypt your email is someone you sent it to or someone in the same organization (if they have a shared account).

Protect your Physical Computer and Network

Cybersecurity does not produce images of big burly security guards, but physical computer and network safety are just as crucial as virtual. This means having physical security checkpoints at entrances and exits of your healthcare organization. It would help if you also were careful about which devices employees plug into the network. Just because a power strip is plugged in doesn’t mean that it’s safe to plug in their mobile device.

Auto-lock and Remote Wipe Apps

Just think of how many texts you receive each day. You might likely be one of the unlucky people who have had their phone hacked. All someone needs to do is get a hold of your phone, and they can easily access any sensitive information on it, including work passwords. It may seem like locking your phone is a no-brainer, but not every employee does it. If your company hands out company phones or lets employees use their personal phones for work email, then decrease the auto-lock time to 30 seconds and install remote wiping.

Remote wipe is a security feature that allows a network administrator or device owner to send a command to a computer device that erases data. It’s usually used to wipe data from a lost or stolen device so that the information isn’t jeopardized if it comes into the wrong hands. It can also be used to erase data from a device that has changed owners or administrators and is no longer accessible physically.

Closing Thoughts

There are no easy answers when it comes to healthcare cybersecurity and email security. All of the things described above, and more, could have been performed by Wellstar Health System. Finally, attacks are growing more sophisticated, data is becoming more readily available, network connection points are rising, and healthcare IT professionals are being spread thin. When it comes to safeguarding your healthcare networks and servers, the first step is to determine which employees have access to sensitive information and which staff require specific data access.

Any strategy must also be adaptable and responsive to changes as they occur. Protected Harbor focuses on more than just software but hardware integration, special application connectivity, and employee workflows to create an always-safe environment. It is likely that at some point, HCIT will need to seek professional help to tackle the security breaches, so it is better to assign the task of managing the system security to an external agency. This way, you will no longer have to worry about data and network security, and your team will be able to focus on medical-related tasks.

An experienced, outside partner can help you see the bigger picture. Protected Harbor has the best practice knowledge on securing managed file transfers, HIPAA-compliant emails, data management, and security. We make sure your data is safe by using robust auditing and encryption technology that meets or exceeds HIPAA requirements for healthcare organizations.

Check out our 2021 Healthcare Data Breach Trend Report from HIMSS and our free eBook Optimizing the Healthcare Stack for Performance to learn more. We are also offering free IT Audits to all healthcare organizations for the next month following this attack. Reach out to schedule one today.

FBI: Russian hackers spy on, scour energy sector of the US; 5 companies targeted

According to a March 18 FBI advice to US businesses received by CNN, hackers affiliated with Russian internet addresses have been examining the networks of five US energy corporations as a possible preliminary to hacking operations.
As the Russian military suffers significant casualties in Ukraine and Western sanctions on the Kremlin begin to bite, the FBI alert only days before President Joe Biden openly warned that Russian-linked hackers could target US companies.

Key Highlights:

• According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, at least five U.S. energy businesses and 18 others in critical infrastructure sectors have seen “abnormal scanning” from Russian-linked IP addresses, according to a Friday bulletin first published by CBS News on March 22.
• The behavior “certainly suggests early phases of reconnaissance, searching networks for vulnerabilities for use in potential future attacks.”
• In a statement, Dennis Hackney, senior director of industrial cybersecurity services development at ABS Group, stated, “It is not surprising that Russia would activate its most effective war-fighting tools online.” “State-sponsored cyberattacks are difficult to attribute definitively,” he added.
• On Monday, Biden warned business executives, “The enormity of Russia’s cyber capability is fairly consequential, and it’s coming.” Read more here.
• Although no breaches have been established due to the scanning, the FBI advises the latest in a series of warnings from US officials to critical infrastructure operators about the possibility of Russian hacking. Biden’s public notice was broad and aimed to raise awareness of the problem, whereas the FBI advice was intended for a private, technical audience to help firms defend their networks.

An overview of the situation

In an address to the Detroit Economic Club, FBI Director Christopher Wray said Tuesday that federal law enforcement is “working closely” with cyber personnel in the private sector and abroad to assess potential threats.

“With the ongoing crisis in Ukraine, we’re focusing especially on the catastrophic cyber threat posed by Russian intelligence services and the cybercriminal groups they defend and promote,” Wray added. “We have cyber personnel collaborating closely with Ukrainians and other allies overseas, corporate sector, and local partners.”

Wray’s remarks come four days after the FBI warned that vital infrastructure providers were under attack, particularly the energy sector.

According to CBS News, the FBI warning instructed: “US Energy Sector companies to analyze current network traffic for these IP addresses and initiate follow-up investigations if discovered.”

However, the FBI advisory does not specify if the “scanning” is a new threat.
“I’m not sure what this announcement is supposed to mean,” independent security consultant Tom Alrich said in an email. “Probably every large utility in the country is scanned thousands of times an hour, 24 hours a day, by bad actors, so I’m not sure what this announcement means.”

An attack on crucial infrastructure, according to experts, might be interpreted as a war crime, giving a nation-state actor pause. The most adept attackers, on the other hand, maybe able to conceal their origins, according to Hackney.

“He explained that the higher the sum of money, the better the cybercriminals’ capacity to hide who they are and how they are funded. “Because state-sponsored threat actors might have large funds, they are usually adept at concealing their true ties. As a result, assigning blame is impossible.”

President Joe Biden has warned Russia that “we are prepared to retaliate” if it “pursues cyberattacks against our industries, our key infrastructure.” For months, the federal government has been striving to improve the protection of 16 critical industries, including energy, communications, finance, and agriculture. On Monday, President Trump released a statement reinforcing previous warnings that Russia could use harmful cyber activity to retaliate for economic penalties imposed by the US and other countries.

Utilities in the United States have stated that they are “closely monitoring” the situation in Ukraine and that they are collaborating with their peers and the federal government.

“Russia has the capability to launch cyberattacks in the United States that have localized, temporary disruptive effects on critical infrastructures, such as temporarily shutting down an electrical distribution network.,” according to the assessment by Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.

Safety Tips from Protected Harbor

Protected Harbor’s security team has been following the matter for a long time and continues to emphasize cybersecurity. Some tips from our experts on how you can protect your business from cyberattacks:

• Install firewalls and other advanced protections at workstations and network equipment such as routers and switches to detect unauthorized activity by hackers who might try compromising your system remotely through internet connections.
• Backup & Disaster Recovery Plan- Always back up data before it is lost in case of an attack. Ensure that all devices are constantly updated with the latest antivirus software available. Password protection should be enabled not just on computers but also on any mobile device or tablet someone may have access to.
• Know your organization’s pain points and consider how to protect them. Understand that cybersecurity is not just about protecting data but also ensuring resiliency so services can continue when attacked or compromised
• Consider security from end-to-end; it’s essential to have a sound strategy for both physical and digital assets on-site and remote access via mobile devices.
• Be aware of what you share online: make sure all social media posts are set appropriately (e.g., don’t post sensitive information like passwords); be cautious with attachments in emails; choose strong passwords that are different than those used elsewhere because they may get stolen by cybercriminals.
• Logging tools such as Palo Alto Network’s next-generation firewalls should be used to monitor for odd activities (NGFW) continuously. The records should subsequently be examined daily to detect any irregularities.
• Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) for all websites, accounts, systems, and network logins, particularly emails. A user’s mobile device is loaded with an application that generates a series of random codes during the login procedure. The code, as well as the password, must be entered by the user.
• Patch any vulnerabilities and software, including older versions. If you merely patch against known attacks, you risk being caught due to an unknown exposure. Patch your computers, networks, webpages, mobile apps, and anything else connected to the Internet.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency recently issued a notice listing 13 known vulnerabilities that Russian state-sponsored hackers have used to attack networks. Criminals use gaps to penetrate systems. Therefore network cybersecurity and network protection are critical for a company’s safety.

Recent cyber-attacks on government websites were carried out with simple tools. The website crashed due to multiple users accessing it at the same time. As shown in this piece, cyberwar threatens Western governments and agencies. To increase their security, businesses must take proactive actions.

Protected Harbor assists businesses in defending themselves and their IT operations against known and unknown threats, such as malware, ransomware, viruses, and phishing. We help organizations back up their data and prevent data loss due to ransomware attacks or other security issues. Learn more about Protected Harbor and request a free IT audit to learn how we can assist you in defending against the Russian Cyber Invasion.

Biden Warns of Russia Cyberattack on US Businesses & Economy

The United States Government has warned privately-held American firms about the growing threat of cyberattacks from Russian hackers.

President Biden warned on Monday that Russia is considering launching cyberattacks on the US businesses in revenge for the economic sanctions placed on Moscow for the invasion of Ukraine.

The President advised private sector organizations in the United States to tighten their cybersecurity against a potential Russian breach in a statement released days before he travels to Brussels for a NATO summit.

“It’s part of Russia’s playbook,” President Biden said in the statement. “Today, my administration is renewing those concerns, based on increasing data indicating the Russian government is considering hacking possibilities.”

I’ve previously warned about the potential that Russia could conduct malicious cyber activity against the U.S. Today, I’m reiterating those warnings based on evolving intelligence that the Russian Government is exploring options for potential cyberattacks. https://t.co/wO2jJgg5SJ

— President Biden (@POTUS) March 21, 2022

According to Anne Neuberger, the deputy national security advisor for cyber and new technology, the administration has no evidence of a specific, significant potential cyberattack against the United States but rather “preparatory activities” targeting critical infrastructure.

Key Findings:

• The US government has been more cautious about Russian hackers’ activities, even as it accuses Moscow of meddling in the 2016 presidential election.
• The private warnings respond to mounting concerns from companies such as Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) that hackers are targeting in Russia and other countries.
• The private, non-public warnings, first reported by Bloomberg, also signal the growing concern among US officials, who have been reluctant to publicly discuss alleged Russian hacking activities.
• The private warnings also come as President Joe Biden’s administration reviews options to retaliate against Russia for its alleged hacking activities.

As the crisis in Ukraine rages, the US has previously warned that Russia may attempt to attack US corporations. According to Ms. Neuberger, the Biden administration’s warning on Monday was an attempt to raise awareness of Russia’s ability to launch a digital attack on American infrastructure.

Ms. Neuberger stated that the administration had lately noticed “preparatory behavior” for future hacking of American infrastructure and had shared that knowledge with businesses in a secret briefing last week. Scanning websites for flaws is one example of this type of action. Ms. Neuberger stated unequivocally that Russian hacking of essential infrastructures, such as oil and energy firms and hospital systems, continues to be a serious concern.

“There’s so much more we need to do to the confidence that we’ve shut our digital doors, especially for Americans’ important services,” Ms. Neuberger said, noting that the private sector manages most of America’s critical infrastructure. “Those owners and operators have the power and obligation to harden the systems and networks we all rely on.”

Last week, the White House briefed more than 100 US corporations on the best ways to guard against a cyberattack. On Monday, the Trump administration issued a directive to businesses to “quickly reinforce your cyber defenses,” recommending actions such as enabling multifactor authentication, ensuring data backups offline, and teaching personnel on hacking techniques.

In the statement, Mr. Biden added, “You have the authority, the capacity, and the obligation to increase the cybersecurity and resilience of the key services and technology Americans rely on.”

Protected Harbor’s Take On The Issue

As one of the top cybersecurity firms in the US, Protected Harbor has been following the matter for a long time. Last week Richard Luna, CEO of Protected Harbor, had a session with SCMagazine about how U.S. businesses can protect themselves from Russian cybersecurity attacks.

He gave the following tips on how to protect from Russian cyber-attacks.

• A solid and robust firewall is a must that can be backed up by effective anti-virus software running on all devices in your network.
• Install network segmentation or ‘air gapping,’ which prevents data transfer between networks without proper authorization. This process also limits potential damage if one part of your system gets hacked as it will not spread across the whole company’s systems afterward, potentially destroying them all at once.
• Continuous monitoring for the unusual activity should be done through logging tools like Palo Alto Network’s next-generation firewalls (NGFW). The logs should then be analysed daily, so any anomalies are immediately noticed.
• Enable MFA for all websites, accounts, systems, and network logins, especially emails. A typical method is that an application is loaded on the users’ mobile device generating a series of random codes during the login process. The user is requested to enter the code along with the password.
• Patch for all vulnerabilities and software, even the old ones. Do not take shortcuts because if you only patch against known attacks, you may get caught due to an unknown vulnerability. Patch your systems, networks, websites, mobile applications, and everything on the Internet.

US Businesses need to quickly identify vulnerabilities, exposure, and misconfigurations that can give opportunities to hackers for gaining a foothold in their IT infrastructure and then implement relevant patches. Russian operators are well known for exploiting edge systems.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has put an alert recently that lists 13 known vulnerabilities used by Russian state-sponsored criminals to compromise networks. Network cybersecurity and network protection are essential for a company’s safety, as criminals detect the loopholes to infiltrate the system.

The recent attacks on government sites were carried out using trivial tools. Multiple users accessed the website at the same time causing a crash. Western governments and agencies are also at risk of cyberwar, as we have discussed in this article. Businesses need to take proactive measures to strengthen their security.

Protected Harbor can help organizations protect themselves and their IT operations from known and unknown attacks, including all forms of malware, ransomware, viruses, and phishing. We help businesses back up their data and prevent ransomware attacks or other security issues resulting in data loss. Learn more about Protected Harbor and reach out for a free IT Audit to see how we can help against the Russian Cyber Invasion.

What are the different types of viruses and ransomware?

In this digital age, viruses and ransomware are becoming a growing security concern for computer users. The threat of malicious software is real, and understanding the different types of viruses and ransomware is essential to protect yourself and your data. There are four main types of viruses, each with its own characteristics and potential harm. These include Trojans, bots, malware, and ransomware. With some basic knowledge, computer users can better protect themselves against these malicious programs. Knowing the differences between these types of viruses and their capabilities is the first step to keeping your computer safe and secure.

Virus:

A computer virus is a malicious code or program written to alter how a computer operates and is designed to spread from one computer to another. A virus operates by inserting or attaching itself to a legitimate program or document that supports macros to execute its code. In the process, a virus can potentially cause unexpected or damaging effects, such as harming the system software by corrupting or destroying data.

Two types of viruses causing headaches for security experts are multipartite virus and polymorphic virus. Multipartite viruses leverage multiple attack vectors to infiltrate systems, while polymorphic viruses cunningly change their code to evade detection. Understanding and defending against these sophisticated adversaries is crucial to safeguarding our digital world.

A macro virus is a malicious code quickly gaining popularity amongst hackers. It is a type of virus that replicates itself by modifying files containing macro language, which can replicate the virus. These can be extremely dangerous as they can spread from one computer to another and can cause damage by corrupting data or programs, making them run slower or crash altogether. Users need to take preventive measures against the threat of viruses, as they can eventually cause serious damage.

Worm:

A computer worm is a type of malware that spreads copies of itself from computer to computer and even operating system. A worm can replicate itself without any human interaction and does not need to attach itself to a software program to cause damage.

Ransomware:

The idea behind ransomware, a form of malicious software, is simple: Lock and encrypt a victim’s computer or device data, then demand a ransom to restore access.

In many cases, the victim must pay the cybercriminal within a set amount of time or risk losing access forever. And since malware attacks are often deployed by cyber thieves, paying the ransom doesn’t ensure access will be restored.

Ransomware holds your personal files hostage, keeping you from your documents, photos, and financial information. Those files are still on your computer, but the malware has encrypted your device, making the data stored on your computer or mobile device inaccessible.

Who are the targets of ransomware attacks?

Ransomware can spread across the Internet without specific targets since it’s one of the most common types of computer virus. But this file-encrypting malware’s nature means that cybercriminals can also choose their targets. This targeting ability enables cybercriminals to go after those who can — and are more likely to — pay larger ransoms.

Trojan:

A Trojan horse, or Trojan, is a type of malicious code or software that looks legitimate but can take control of your computer. A Trojan is designed to damage, disrupt, steal, or inflict some other harmful action on your data or network.

A Trojan acts like a bona fide application or file to trick you. It seeks to deceive you into loading and executing the malware on your device. Once installed, a Trojan can perform the action it was designed for.

A Trojan is sometimes called a Trojan or a Trojan horse virus, but that’s a misnomer. A Trojan cannot. A user has to execute Trojans. Even so, Trojan malware and Trojan virus are often used interchangeably.

Bots:

Bots, or Internet robots, are also known as spiders, crawlers, and web bots. While they may be utilized to perform repetitive jobs, such as indexing a search engine, they often come in the form of malware. Malware bots are used to gain total control over a computer.

The Good

One of the typical “good” bots used is to gather information. Bots in such guises are called web crawlers. Another “good” use is automatic interaction with instant messaging, instant relay chat, or assorted other web interfaces. Dynamic interaction with websites is yet another way bots are used for positive purposes.

The Bad

Malicious bots are defined as self-propagating malware that infects its host and connects back to a central server(s). The server functions as a “command and control center” for a botnet or a network of compromised computers and similar devices. Malicious bots have the “worm-like ability to self-propagate” and can also:

• Gather passwords
• Obtain financial information
• Relay spam
• Open the back doors on the infected computer

Malware:

Malware is an abbreviated form of “malicious software.” This is software specifically designed to gain access to or damage a computer, usually without the owner’s knowledge. There are various types of malware, including spyware, ransomware, viruses, worms, Trojan horses, adware, or any malicious code that infiltrates a computer.

Each type of malware has its own purpose and potential impacts, making it important to be aware of the different types of malware. We can protect ourselves from these malicious software threats with the right knowledge and resources.

Generally, the software is considered malware based on the creator’s intent rather than its actual features. Malware creation is rising due to money that can be made through organized Internet crime. Originally malware was created for experiments and pranks, but eventually, it was used for vandalism and destruction of targeted machines. Today, much malware is created to make a profit from forced advertising (adware), stealing sensitive information (spyware), spreading email spam or child pornography (zombie computers), or extorting money (ransomware).

The best protection from malware — whether ransomware, bots, browser hijackers, or other malicious software — continues to be the usual preventive advice: be careful about what email attachments you open, be cautious when surfing by staying away from suspicious websites, and install and maintain an updated, quality antivirus program.

Spyware:

Spyware is unwanted software that infiltrates your computing device, stealing your internet usage data and sensitive information. Spyware is classified as a type of malware — malicious software designed to gain access to or damage your computer, often without your knowledge. Spyware gathers your personal information and relays it to advertisers, data firms, or external users.

Spyware is used for many purposes. Usually, it aims to track and sell your internet usage data, capture your credit card or bank account information, or steal your personal identity. How? Spyware monitors your internet activity, tracking your login and password information, and spying on your sensitive information.

Evading Rise of Ransomware

Security can be termed as protection from unwanted harm or unwanted resources. Information security protects the data from unauthorized users or access. It can also be termed as an important asset for any organization which plays a vital role. In earlier days it was difficult to identify ransomware before it enters or attacks the user’s system. These attacks would damage the mail servers, databases, expert systems, and confidential systems. In this paper, we propose the analysis and detection of ransomware which will have a major impact on business continuity.

RANSOMWARE

Lately, with the extensive usage of the internet, cybercriminals are rapidly growing targeting naïve users thru threats and malware to generate a ransom. Currently, this ransomware has become the most agonizing malware. Ransomware comprises of two. They are locker ransomware and crypto-ransomware. Of them, crypto-ransomware is the most familiar type that aims to encrypt users‟ data and locker ransomware prevent the users from accessing their data by locking the system or device. Both types of a ransomware demand a ransom payable via electronic mode for restoring the access of the data and system. Locker ransomware claims fee from the victims in terms of fine for downloading illegal content as per their fake law enforcement notice. Crypto ransomware has a time limit that warns the victims to pay the ransom within the given time else the data will be lost forever.

Spreading of ransomware is possible by the following methods:

1. Phishy e-mail messages with malicious file attachments;
2. Software patches that download the threat into the victim’s machine whilst working online.

Spreading of Ransomware Attack

1. Phishing emails: The most common way of spreading Ransomware is thru phishing emails or spam emails. These mails include a .exe file or an attachment, which when opened launches ransomware on the victim’s machine.
2. Exploit kits: these are the compromised websites planned by the attackers for malicious use. These exploit kits search for vulnerable website visitors to download the ransomware onto their machine.

VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT AND TOOLS

The vulnerability can be termed as unsafe or unauthorized access by an intruder into an unprotected or exposed network. Common vulnerabilities are worms, viruses, spyware applications, spam emails, etc. Vulnerability Assessment is the most important technique that is conducted to rate the spontaneous attacks or risks that occur in the system thereby affecting the business continuity of an organization. Vulnerability assessment has many steps such as

1. Vulnerability analysis
2. Scope of the vulnerability assessment
3. Information gathering
4. Vulnerability identification
5. Information Analysis and
6. Planning

Assessment Tools

Vulnerability assessment which is nothing but testing can be carried out by best-known tools which are called vulnerability assessment tools. These tools are used to mitigate the identified vulnerabilities such as investigating unethical access to copyrighted materials, policy violations of the organizations‟ etc. The red alert issue about the vulnerability assessment is that it warns us about the vulnerability before the system is compromised and helps us in avoiding or preventing the attack. These vulnerability assessment tools can also be categorized as proactive security measures of an organization. The major step of the vulnerability assessment is the accurate testing of a system. The major step of the vulnerability assessment is the accurate testing of a system. If overlooked, it might lead to either false positives or false negatives. False-positive can be presumed as quicksand where we can’t find what we are searching for. False-negative can be presumed as a black hole where we don’t know what we want to search for. False positives can be rated as a significant level in testing.

Common Vulnerability Assessment Tools

• Vulnerabilities are the most crucial part of information systems. An error in configuration or violation of a policy might compromise a network in an organization. These attacks can be for personal gain or corporate gain.
• Not only the local area networks but also the websites are also more susceptible to attacks where the systems can be exploited either by the insiders or outsiders of an organization.
• Some of the very commonly used vulnerability assessment tools are listed below:
  • Wireshark
  • Nmap
  • Metasploit
  • OpenVAS
  • AirCrack

Limitations of Existing Vulnerability Assessment Tools

The concept of false positives is the dangerous and horrendous limitation of the existing vulnerability assessment tools. These false positives require lots of testing and study for assessing the nature of the errors that occurred, which is a very expensive and time taking process. All the identification-related information mostly leads to false positives.

Penetration Testing

• Penetration Testing also called as Pen Test is an attempt to assess a malicious activity or any security breach by exploiting the vulnerabilities.
• It includes the testing of the networks, security applications and processes that are involved in the network.
• Penetration testing is done to improve the performance of the system by testing the system’s efficiency.

Go Phishing

With COVID-19 changing the way many businesses are forced to work, phishing attacks have increased significantly while becoming more complex. Hackers often look at crises as opportunities and COVID-19 is no different. Attackers are using names of coworkers and companies to fool people into thinking they’re legitimate emails. With many employees working from home and logging in, there is an increased reliance on remote system tools, and phishing scams have evolved to mimic them.

Stressful times are upon us and there is no letup in sight. As a result, IT staff are finding themselves overwhelmed as they address a multitude of system issues, software problems, and new problems stemming from employees working remotely. Many employees are using personal devices, which are more vulnerable to cyber-attacks. To be truly prepared for remote work and sophisticated threats, businesses need to analyze their weaknesses and implement proper cybersecurity approaches.

At PROTECTED HARBOR, we provide custom solutions to cyber-attacks, ransomware and other debilitating infrastructure issues. Our team of IT professionals ensures your infrastructure is secure through the creation and implementation of security policies. We analyze and remediate risks to keep you safe. On average, we save our clients up to 30% on IT costs while increasing their security, productivity, durability and sustainability. We are an extension of many IT departments, freeing them up to concentrate on daily work while we do the heavy infrastructure lifting.

Contact us today to find out more, www.protectedharbor.com