Common Cyberthreats and How to Mitigate Them

Cybersecurity professionals are faced with the daunting task of protecting an IT environment from a wide variety of threats and risks. Addressing the vast array of weapons wielded by today’s sophisticated threat actors can be overwhelming without implementing effective strategies and tactics to mitigate the risks.

Organizations that neglect to implement the proper cybersecurity solutions are tempting fate and may soon become another victim. Statistics indicate that there are serious financial consequences associated with a cyberattack. Businesses may be forced to close in the wake of a cyberattack.

We’re going to look at some of the common cyberthreats endangering organizations’ data security. We’ll offer some recommendations on mitigating these threats and discuss how an extended detection and response (XDR) solution can be instrumental in safeguarding an IT environment.

Common Cyberthreats Companies Need to Address

Companies are regularly subjected to many types of cyberthreats. Below are the most common threats facing businesses today.

• Malware and ransomware - Malicious software or malware is perhaps the weapon most commonly used by threat actors. Malware can be designed to perform harmful activities like corrupting files, exfiltrating data, or stealing credentials. Ransomware is a particularly virulent and popular form of malware that encrypts an organization’s data and holds it for ransom.
• Phishing and social media attacks - Phishing and social media attacks typically attempt to deceive message recipients into divulging sensitive information or clicking on a malicious link. The link may download malware to the unsuspecting victim’s computer and gain access to the wider IT environment.
• Supply chain attacks - A supply chain attack affects a third-party software product or service used by an organization. The compromised software can be used to conduct further exploits of an IT environment such as launching malware or stealing data.
• Insider threats - Companies need to be aware of potentially malicious insider threats that can be extremely damaging. Insiders have deep knowledge of an organization’s most valuable targets and may be motivated to exfiltrate data or impact operations for a variety of personal or financial reasons.
• Code injection attacks - This type of attack injects malicious code into an application to affect its operation. The attack may be designed to provide privileged access so malware or trojans can be installed or to allow threat actors to perform SQL injection.
• AI-powered attacks - AI technology is being used to craft sophisticated phishing attacks. Unskilled threat actors are also leveraging the power of AI to develop malware and ransomware to attack vulnerable organizations.
• Business email compromise (BEC) - Threat actors craft emails that appear to be from a legitimate source to make targeted requests that can put valuable resources at risk. BEC can affect an organization and its customers who may be deceived by the malicious emails.
• IoT attacks - The proliferation of Internet of Things (IoT) devices to meet a wide range of business requirements has dramatically increased the attack surface companies need to defend. Threat actors may exploit security vulnerabilities in IoT devices to gain entry to the wider IT environment where they can plan malware or exfiltrate data. Attacks may also be designed to damage the devices to negatively affect operations.
• Denial of service attacks - This type of attack denies legitimate users access to a network, application, or other IT resource. Threat actors accomplish this feat through activities such as flooding the target with traffic, making it impossible for it to respond to legitimate requests.

Strategies and Tactics to Mitigate Common Cyberthreats

Organizations must adopt a comprehensive cybersecurity approach to successfully mitigate the risks of cyberthreats. The following legacy strategies and tactics are essential components of an effective cybersecurity initiative.

• Secure the network - Firewalls and Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) can keep known threats out of the environment. Network monitoring should be implemented to detect suspicious activities or unauthorized access.
• Protect mobile and edge resources - The IT perimeter has expanded with the rise of the mobile workforce and edge computing. These resources need additional protection to prevent threat actors from accessing the environment where they can cause significant damage.
• Implement strict access controls - Identity and access management (IAM) solutions are crucial for keeping unauthorized individuals away from sensitive resources. Multi-factor authentication (MFA) should be enforced for all important systems and data assets.
• Encryption - All sensitive or valuable data should be encrypted when at rest and in transit. Encrypting the data protects it from use if accessed by unauthorized entities.
• Backup and recovery - Backup all data regularly and maintain several encrypted copies of the backups. Recovery plans should be designed to quickly restore mission-critical systems after a cyber incident. These plans should be tested and modified to address lessons learned and keep up with changes to the IT environment.
• Endpoint security - Protecting endpoints with antivirus, anti-malware, and endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions is necessary to keep threat actors from using these devices to gain access to the company’s infrastructure.
• Patch management - Systems should be updated promptly to install security patches and other enhancements. The environment should be scanned regularly to identify vulnerabilities that can be addressed by patching infrastructure components.
• Promote a security-focused company culture - Cybersecurity measures will be more effective when they are supported by upper management. Companies should continuously audit the environment and work to continuously improve cybersecurity measures.
• Provide employee education - Training and education should be mandatory for all employees so they understand the threats to security and their role in securing the IT environment.
• Create incident response plans - Response plans need to be created to handle various types of cybersecurity incidents. These plans may involve recovering affected systems to maintain business operations in the wake of a cyberattack.

How an XDR Solution Improves Defenses Against Cyberthreats

XDR provides an additional cybersecurity solution with enhanced capabilities to help organizations detect and respond to existing and potential cyberthreats. An XDR platform uses threat intelligence to identify known and emerging threats to the IT environment so they can be addressed before causing damage. The solution works with your current cybersecurity stack to improve your ability to protect your IT resources.

Samurai XDR is an advanced cybersecurity platform that provides customers valuable benefits in the battle against sophisticated threat actors. Following are the major advantages of implementing Samurai XDR in your environment.

• Samurai XDR incorporates telemetry from across the environment to detect threats that can not be detected by standalone cybersecurity solutions.
• The platform consolidates and prioritizes threat information to enhance security team productivity, allowing them to concentrate on the most dangerous threats and minimizing false alarms.
• Samurai XDR’s threat detection capability is powered by the superior threat intelligence provided by NTT's Tier 1 ISP, which analyzes more than 40% of the internet. No other XDR solution on the market offers this level of visibility into emerging threats.
• The platform is based on a monthly subscription that allows companies to start small with simple telemetry integrations. As customers become comfortable with the solution and its benefits, more integrations can be added to provide enhanced threat protection.

Start your 30-day free trial today and get the enhanced threat protection you need to safeguard your valuable IT environment.