A10 Networks' cybersecurity forecasts for 2021 - home office, education and the medical sector in the focus of hackers. Digitization in Germany will enable cybercriminals to launch new targets in the coming year - companies can protect themselves through targeted preparation
The year 2020 was marked by numerous new and further developed cyber attacks, which will continue in the coming year. A10 Networks, a leading provider of applications and solutions for cybersecurity, gives an outlook on the foreseeable threats for the coming year and the affected industries, business areas and social areas that will be the focus of cyber criminals in 2021.
The developments of the past year will have a special influence on the expected priorities of the cybersecurity landscape in 2021. Due to the pandemic and the associated multiple switch to home office solutions, the individual employees are moving even more into the focus of cyber criminals, which means that appropriate training courses and strategies to protect against potential attacks are becoming increasingly important. But cyber criminals will not only focus on the service sector and industry in 2021. The health and education sectors should also be prepared for increased attacks. For IT managers, therefore, the focus will be on preparing for numerous anticipated attacks.
Home office remains a risk factor for companies
While work in the home office was part of everyday life for many employees in 2020, the respective IT managers concentrated at full speed on making this new work reality safe. Now that far-reaching advances have been made in terms of IT infrastructure and equipment, the main risk remains with the employees themselves. Those in charge can never rule out the possibility of unnoticed security risks in the home office of the respective employee, for example through compromised smart home applications.
"If you consider security risks in the home office, the user is often the weakest link in the chain," explains Heiko Frank, Principal System Engineer at A10 Networks. "Basically, companies are well advised to use zero trust models as much as possible in 2021 as well."
In order to protect sensitive data and trade secrets, it is therefore advisable in 2021 to orientate the home office structure of employees on common models that only allow access to data if there is unequivocal authentication.
Focus on the health sector
In addition to the well-known focus of many cyber criminals on commercial companies and corporations, healthcare institutions will also be increasingly exposed to digital threats in 2021. In times of e-prescriptions, electronic patient files and complex, networked hospital infrastructures, it can be very lucrative for cyber criminals to gain access to these systems in order to resell the data obtained in this way. Medical institutions are threatened not only with the loss of data, but also with severe fines and, as a consequence, a far-reaching loss of confidence in the health system.
“The increasing willingness to attack hospitals was particularly evident in countries like the USA. The risk is particularly high wherever a lot of information, such as patient data, is moved over the Internet and partly stored on local clouds. In addition to economic damage, this can also pose a major risk to human life, ”explains Heiko Frank.
Not only the threat from DDoS attacks, but also from ransomware attacks, i.e. the encryption of data in order to extort ransom, will increase sharply in the healthcare sector. Cybersecurity solutions for protection against ransomware and for mitigation of DDoS attacks from the economy can also help to ensure the security of critical infrastructures in the healthcare sector.
Education sector and DDoS attacks
In 2020, the pandemic meant that many areas of everyday life had to switch quickly to digital strategies. This also applied to the education sector and the school system. However, schools and the corresponding student platforms in particular were affected by cyber attacks in the course of homeschooling. One of the most surprising factors here is that the cause of these attacks was not commercial criminals, but often the students themselves.
"If the server is overloaded and therefore no homework is available, this is a great incentive for students who are keen to experiment and have a little time and an interest in technology," explains Heiko Frank. In order to bring the capacity of a regular school server to the limit of capacity, around 200 pupils are sufficient, for example, who can access a corresponding service at the same time. Frank explains the lack of knowledge on the part of the teachers at times as the cause of these attacks. "If teachers grew up in the era of the chalkboard and the overhead projector, it goes without saying that the necessary basics for dealing with modern technology are often not available."
One way to counteract DDoS attacks in the education sector in the future is not only to increase awareness of cybersecurity, but also to relocate the servers to a public infrastructure. In this way, the digitization of the school system can also be advanced in 2021.
Cybersecurity made easy for 2021
In addition to firewalls, virus scanners, password security and precautions against ransomware attacks, companies, schools and medical institutions should rely on regular employee training. In addition, those responsible should ask themselves which cloud is used and whether it should only be accessible internally or publicly.
“In the age of IoT and increasing digitization in a wide variety of areas, companies, medical facilities and schools have to prepare for all eventualities and threats. There should be a special focus on the employees, ”explains Heiko Frank.
More on this at A10Networks.com
Via A10 Networks A10 Networks (NYSE: ATEN) provides secure application services for on-premises, multi-cloud and edge-cloud environments at hyperscale speeds. The company enables service providers and companies to deliver business-critical applications that are secure, available and efficient for the transformation to multi-cloud and 5G. A10 Networks enables better business results that support investment protection, new business models and future-proof infrastructures, and enable customers to deliver a secure and accessible digital experience. A10 Networks was founded in 2004, is based in San Jose, California, and serves customers worldwide. More information is available at www.a10networks.com and @ A10Networks.