Everything You Need to Know About Cyber Security

October 12th, 2022 by admin

A red shield on a blue background with hash characters. Cyber security concept

Picture this: an employee sits at her desk and works with data, while in the background, there is a hacker secretly accessing her company's confidential files. He manages to steal all sensitive information and then sells all of it to criminals, many of whom will want a profit by holding the company to ransom. It may sound like a movie scene, but it is unfortunate that it is a reality today in the online landscape. That's why cybersecurity has become an integral part of all business strategies, and now there is more demand for cybersecurity specialists than ever.

We will be covering everything you need to know about cybersecurity here, including how it works, what cybersecurity experts should do to protect data, and why it's required.

What Is Cybersecurity?

Cybersecurity is the process that's designed to protect devices and networks from external threats. Organizations generally employ cybersecurity professionals to protect confidential information, enhance customer confidence in services and products, and maintain employee productivity. The cybersecurity world revolves around the industry standards of availability, confidentiality, and integrity.

The meaning of privacy is that only authorized parties can access data; integrity means that only authorized users can add, alter, or remove information. The meaning of availability is that all data, systems, and functions must be available all the time according to the parameters agreed upon in a contract. Cybersecurity's main element is using authentication mechanisms. For instance, a username will identify the account that needs to be accessed by a user; meanwhile, a password is a mechanism proving the user's identity.

Types of Cybercrimes

Any unauthorized activity that involves a network, computer, or device is known as cybercrime. There are three types:

  • Crimes involving a computer incidentally instead of directly.
  • Crimes where the target is the computer.
  • Computer-assisted crimes.

Cybercriminals tend to profit from their crimes as they use various tactics, which may include:

  • DOS or Denial of Service: Where hackers consume all the resources of a server, leaving nothing to access for legitimate users
  • Malware: This is where a virus or worm hits the device of its victims and renders it useless
  • Man in the Middle: This is where hackers place themselves between a router and the victim's machine for sniffing data packets
  • Phishing: This is where hackers send emails that look legitimate and ask users to share personal information.

Some other cyber-attack types you should know about include SQL injection attacks, password attacks, cross-site scripting attacks, birthday attacks that are designed for algorithm functions, and eavesdropping attacks.

What Motivates Cybercriminals?

There is only one main motivation behind cybercrime: disrupting regular business activities and critical infrastructures. Also, cybercriminals are known for manipulating data they have stolen for financial benefits, achieving military objectives, damaging a reputation, propagating political or religious beliefs, and causing financial losses.

Some cybercriminals don't even need any motivation to cause harm and may simply start hacking for the fun of it or to show off their skills to the rest of the world. Most cybercriminals aren't even looking to hurt people, but their actions can cause a lot of harm. No one is safe in the online world from a cyber-attack, and if you find yourselves in the crosshairs of a cybercriminal, you could suffer a lot.

It's not only about hacking and disrupting services for most cyber criminals. It is a game to many, and they want to win it, while some only want to watch the world burn. They will engage in cyber-attacks because they are bored or simply because they want to prove to themselves that they could do it. There are different motivations for all cyber criminals, but one thing is for sure, they will not get off easily once caught.

What to do In Case of a Cyber-Attack?

If you've found yourself to be the victim of a cyber-attack, you will know that it isn't fun, and it would be best if you contacted the authorities. If you're working for an organization and have found that your systems or data has been compromised, you should tell your higher-ups about the attack and ensure that the authorities are involved from the offset. Learn how Parker Data & Voice can protect your company. Contact us today.

Posted in: Cyber Security