Every day more devices connect to the Internet. A recent report put the number of Internet users at 3.4 billion and mobile users at 3.8 billion. All of those devices and their data provide the foundation for unique services that we rely on throughout our daily business and personal lives – until those services are taken over by hackers.
Data ransom and data corruption are relatively new crimes but they’re spreading quickly. In a typical data ransom attack, malicious software, aptly called ransomware, infects computers and restricts users’ access to their files until the ransom is paid. In some instances, the criminals also threaten to permanently destroy the target’s information unless a ransom is paid. Data corruption, however, is a cyberattack that intentionally corrupts or manipulates a target’s data.
Just recently a new piece of Android malware (some call it “XBot“) surfaced that not only steals your banking info, it also uses the well-known ransomware program CryptoLocker. The criminals ask for a $100 payment made via PayPal. In February Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center paid $17,000 in bitcoins to hackers that gained control of the hospital’s computer systems and held it hostage. Last year a police department outside of Boston paid a $500 ransom to regain access to a server. Australia and the New Zealand region was hit by a modified version of TorrentLocker, a crypto-ransomware that requires bitcoin payments.
Data corruption could be the most difficult type of malicious activity to identify because many companies are not necessarily prepared to determine what the accurate data should be. Last fall, U.S. intelligence officials stated their concerns that malicious cyber activity will deliberately manipulate data, altering it in a way that the data owners and users will unknowingly rely on and make decisions based on the false data.
Data is a critical component when it comes to running an organization. Last year Forbes published the results of a survey that found 61 percent of respondents acknowledge that big data now is a driver of revenues in its own right, and is becoming as valuable to their businesses as their existing products and services. Study after study has shown that the collection and use of data are increasing. As the collection and use increases, so does the value. Higher value targets will likely drive up the frequency of data ransoms — and drive up the payment.
Today, connectivity is required! Data is now one of the most highly valued assets an organization can have. Our addiction to connectivity and the benefits of operating in a data rich environment will only grow stronger. Given those statements, it is easy to see why they have become such high value targets of malicious cyber actors. That is why all those involved in cybersecurity have urged decision-makers to take action now to try and stem the increasing dangers emanating from cyberspace. With all these recent events, one has to wonder if the window of opportunity to take a proactive approach is about to pass!
