Archive for May 29, 2023

Phishing Attacks Surge 356% And Cloud Service Attacks 161% – Perception Point

Posted in Commentary with tags on May 29, 2023 by itnerd

According to Perception Point’s 2023 Annual Report: Cybersecurity Trends & Insights report, researchers observed a 356% growth in the number of advanced phishing attacks attempted by threat actors with the total number of attacks increasing by 87% in 2022.

Also, password-protected malware saw a trend in 2022, with attackers using encryption to protect their payloads and evade detection. Possibly correlating to the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in March attacks increased tenfold to that of the February and then in October the numbers tripled that of September.

Furthermore, with email and browsers remaining the leading attack vectors, threat actors have adapted to organizations’ widespread adoption of cloud collaboration apps, storage and productivity services, with 2022 experiencing a 161% surge in attacks on cloud services. 

Overall, other notable figures from the report include:

  • Malware accounted for 28.6% of incidents behind phishing (67.4%) 
  • BEC attacks grew by 83%
  • Phone scam attacks made a comeback by 363%
  • Microsoft was most impersonated in emails – 3.3x more than the next most copied LinkedIn

Ted Miracco, CEO, Approov Mobile Security had this comment:

   “The statistics are no surprise and only the beginning. The revolution in large language model (LLM) AI is opening up a whole new world for phishing attacks, increasing both the ease and sophistication of attacks. Sadly, these attackers are going to be wildly successful and as a consequence the number of attacks will continue to grow, as appropriate defenses are not yet in place. Businesses will be targeted, and as they become more sophisticated in the defense against Phishing, it will be redirected at consumers or high-net worth individuals. Most discouraging about these attacks is the victims who will be the most vulnerable, including seniors, who are often targeted, especially with the ‘Microsoft’ impersonating version of these scams.”

Given that I spend a lot of time and effort to fight threats like these, this is a very sobering report. I along with anyone who lives in this space is going to have a difficult time over the next year or two based on this.

Guest Post: Interest in cybersecurity and career opportunities surge in May 2023

Posted in Commentary with tags on May 29, 2023 by itnerd

Current data from Google Trends reveals that public interest in cybersecurity and careers in the field has grown significantly since the beginning of 2022 and reached an all-time high in May 2023.

Media coverage of cyber incidents, data breaches, and privacy violations has raised public consciousness about the importance of cybersecurity. People are becoming increasingly aware of the potential consequences of cyber threats. 

This increased awareness has fueled a desire to protect personal and organizational data, hence growing interest in cybersecurity careers. 

The shortage of skilled cybersecurity professionals has driven up the salaries in the field.

In turn, Google search interest for keywords ‘cybersecurity,’ ‘cybersecurity salary,’ and ‘cybersecurity jobs’ hit an all-time in May 2023, according to Atlas VPN findings

The global search volume figures show that interest in cybersecurity and jobs in the field has been steadily growing since the second half of 2015. 

However, a significant uptick in attention toward digital security and employment opportunities can be seen in Q1 2022, which continued until the end of the year, likely caused by remote work, media attention, and a rise in cyber attacks. 

The Google search popularity for keywords ‘cybersecurity salary’ and ‘cybersecurity’ jumped to 97 in September and October of 2022 and then declined to around 70 in December.

Since the start of this year, the search volume for ‘cybersecurity’ and ‘cybersecurity salary’ has hovered at around 90, and about 80 for the keyword ‘cybersecurity jobs’. 

However, in May 2023, the popularity of all three keywords quickly reached a relative interest of 100.

Causes for the record popularity could be multiple, including significant recent cybersecurity incidents, newly released influential industry reports, the favorable job market for cybersecurity professionals, and new government initiatives and regulations. 

Atmosphere of cybersecurity careers 

On top of attractive pay, cybersecurity is seen as one of the most stable careers for the foreseeable future. 

With the continuous evolution of technology and the ongoing need for protection against cyber threats, cybersecurity professionals can expect long-term job security and a variety of career advancement prospects.

At the same time, cybersecurity is a dynamic and multidisciplinary field that requires constant learning and adaptation. 

To read the full article, head over to: 

https://atlasvpn.com/blog/interest-in-cybersecurity-and-career-opportunities-surge-in-may-2023

Elon Musk Pulls Twitter From EU Code Of Practice On Disinformation

Posted in Commentary with tags on May 29, 2023 by itnerd

In 2018 Twitter joined a list of tech companies, social media services, and other organizations to abide by a voluntary Code of Practice on Disinformation. However as of Friday, Twitter has decided to opt out of this. TechCrunch has the details:

In a tweet last night — which confirmed earlier reports of Twitter’s impending exit from the EU Code— Breton issued the social media platform with a blunt warning: Telling Twitter it cannot hide from incoming legal liability in this area.

“Twitter leaves EU voluntary Code of Practice against disinformation. But obligations remain. You can run but you can’t hide,” Breton wrote — a reference to obligations the platform is legally required to comply with as a so-called very large online platform (VLOP) under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA).

“Beyond voluntary commitments, fighting disinformation will be legal obligation under #DSA as of August 25. Our teams will be ready for enforcement.”

The pan-EU law, which entered into force back in November, requires VLOPs like Twitter to assess and mitigate systemic risks to civic discourse and electoral processes, such as disinformation.

The deadline for VLOPs’ compliance with obligations in the DSA is three months from now.

So, this is going to get interesting in a hurry. If Elon Musk really wants to pick this fight, he may be fined 6% of annual turnover for every violation. And that’s cash that he doesn’t have. On top of that the EU could block Twitter outright. And that would cost him even more money. So why would he do this? It truly makes zero sense. But nothing that Elon does makes sense as he seems from those of us watching from the outside to be a really irrational person. All I know is that those who pick fights with the EU lose way more often than they win. And given Elon’s recent track record, he should be prepared to be on the losing end of this.