Online shops and stores have prepared for the onslaught of the high-volume pre-Christmas business. But this business is not only extremely lucrative for companies, the cloud security specialist from Hanover Hornetsecurity warns of a drastic increase in cyber crime: Phishing, DDoS attacks and ransomware are causing immense damage right now.
In the past few years, customers were often affected by phishing campaigns from November to mid-December. Hornetsecurity expects a significant increase again this year. Phishing emails are mainly sent on behalf of the online giant Amazon. Unbeatable offers tempt unsuspecting recipients to reveal your data.
But not only phishing attacks are to be expected more and more these days, online retailers in particular can expect an increase in DDoS attacks. With a flood of server requests, hackers are bringing the providers' systems to their knees, which means that some sales opportunities are wasted.
Cyber crime: What are the dangers?
But that's not all: Hornetsecurity assumes an increased number of ransomware attacks, especially in the pre-Christmas period. The malware arrives at the company via email and encrypts important files. In order to keep operations going, there is a greater chance that companies will pay a ransom - this fact is mercilessly exploited by cyber criminals.
This is how companies can protect themselves
Of course, companies have to keep an eye on their IT security all year round, but especially in the run-up to Christmas it is important to pay special attention to the gateway e-mail communication. Hornetsecurity therefore gives tips on what to consider:
1. Protection against spam and malware: An initial security barrier is created when e-mail communication is protected from spam and malware attacks. Cloud-based filter systems offer up-to-date protection against the latest threats.
2. Protection against phishing: In order to be able to protect themselves effectively against phishing attacks, the security services must be able to analyze links embedded in messages. With URL scanning, for example, the links are examined and opened in a secure environment. If a link is suspicious, the user will be informed.
3. Protection against DDoS attacks: Appropriate security solutions must be able to block the flow of inquiries at an early stage. With regard to the use of carpet bombing, a failover should be implemented in an emergency, which can take over without interruption in the event of a server failure.
4. Protection against ransomware attacks: Most ransomware attacks are advanced persistent threats. Classic anti-virus filters reach their limits with increasing professionalism. However, there are corresponding security solutions that use a sandbox to open suspicious attachments in a secure environment and with a corresponding time delay. It is not uncommon for the harmful functions of ransomware to be activated at a later point in time. Some providers, such as Hornetsecurity, also offer intelligent detection mechanisms that are able to expose targeted attacks on particularly vulnerable people and to react to certain content patterns that suggest malicious intentions.
More on this at HornetSecurity.com
About Hornetsecurity Hornetsecurity is the leading German cloud security provider for e-mail in Europe and protects the IT infrastructure, digital communication and data of companies and organizations of all sizes. The security specialist from Hanover provides its services via 10 redundantly secured data centers around the world. The product portfolio includes all important areas of e-mail security, from spam and virus filters to legally compliant archiving and encryption, to defense against CEO fraud and ransomware. Hornetsecurity has around 200 employees at 12 locations around the world and operates with its international dealer network in more than 30 countries.