This year Safer Internet Day theme “Create, connect and share respect: A better internet starts with you” is more like a friendly invitation for everyone to make a good use of the internet by the everyday common users. However, when we make a reality check of what’s really happening everyday backstage on the internet it is more like a war zone.
There are lots people from different countries trying access, control and steal users personal information and their computers with criminal intent. Some groups target individuals or home users whose smart devices, phones, tablets and personal computers are vulnerable because they do not have the expertise to protect themselves. Social networks and emails are the most targeted applications in their group.
Other groups have in their sights in government agencies and business. This is where they can make lots of money using one type of hack, Ransomware. This kind of attack, once inside the private network, encrypts the data with their own key and ask for money in order to get the data back. If the business or agency does not have proper backups or disaster recovery procedures, their chances to recover lost data are on the hands of the hackers. If the ransom is not paid within the time slot established by them then the amount asked increases not so the recovery options. Even paying the ransom does not guarantee that you can recover the data.
So, following simple actions will help companies minimize their exposure to this type of attacks. Email from unknown senders or sources are the primary infection vector. Run daily backups of critical data and whenever possible take those backups to a safe place. Keep the operating system of your computers patched with the latest security updates provided by the vendors. In addition, productivity applications and software like MS Office need to be patch.
Protecting the internet and from the internet is more common sense than security expertise.
In PRComputer Services, we are available to help your business be protected and assess the security needs of your organization.
Contact Us: (787) 641-7727