LEARN HOW TO BE CYBER SAFE

Cyber attacks are rapidly increasing and evolving, with cyber criminals becoming ever more sophisticated in the way they target organisations and individuals.

According to the National Cyber Security Centre, 38% of British small businesses suffered a cyber incident over a 12-month period and UK individuals lost £4billion to online fraudsters in 2022.

Cybercrime is a highly profitable global crime sector, with the cost predicted to hit $8 trillion worldwide, growing to $10.5 trillion by 2025.

We take a closer look at cybercrime and its evolution and Lifeline IT’s Daniel explains how businesses need to adapt their strategies to keep pace with the threat.

Said Daniel, who has a special interest in cybercrime and has worked with London Metropolitan University on cyber security: “Cybercrime has become a highly sophisticated and profitable industry. Attacks are incredibly well formed and by no means idealistic – it doesn’t matter whether you’re a small business, charity or large global company, you’re at risk.

“The criminals behind it go to great lengths to find out about companies so they can target them in ways that look genuine. They’ll do things like look at employees Facebook profiles so they know if they’re on holiday and can then target another employee in the company who may be less likely to check if an email or payment request is authentic. Another one is searching LinkedIn to find people who have recently changed job and may be less up to speed with their new company’s security policy. Two of the most common types of cybercrime are ransomware and false payment scams.”

Ransomware is a type of malicious software that is designed to block access to a computer system or files until a ransom is paid. False payment scams are when a scammer tricks an individual into sending money by targeting them with what appears to be plausible accounting or financial requests.

Ensuring companies and individuals adhere to basic security procedures is vital in the fight against cybercrime. Having unique and complex passwords, using two-factor authentication, keeping software updated and using data encryption to protect data are all essentials, alongside a robust backup strategy. However, Daniel explains that security now needs to be tailored towards the individual business.

“The criminals are very clever at learning all about your organisation and finding a way of targeting you so it looks realistic. Therefore, it’s no longer a ‘one size fits all’ approach and here at Lifeline IT it’s about advising on the right system for a specific company. We also take into consideration the needs of the business and finding the right balance – there’s no point in having multiple layers of security if it’s actually stopping people from doing their work in a timely and efficient manner.”