5 Reasons Why Businesses Are Failing IT 101

In today’s ever-changing technological landscape, cybercriminals have taken on the challenge of cybersecurity. Different forms of ransomware and crytojacking malware are their new weapons of choice—not just for their 15 minutes of fame, but to rake in crazy amounts of profit. Just like any other profession, hackers are “in it to win it.” Because hackers have developed such an effective bag of tools, they have upped the stakes on businesses who stand to lose everything if not fully prepared. Becoming a victim of a cyberattack can bring about a myriad of different problems.

• Monetary costs of the broken OS installation
• Lost productivity
• Cost of damaged hardware
• Irreparable business partnerships
• Lost opportunities
• Costs related to manpower and rebuilding lost data
• Desecration of the brand, its reputation, and customer trust

Companies large and small, including self-employed professionals, who depend on a computer network these days are all in the same boat. They must come to realize that the price of installing credible cyber defense is not a cost, but an investment in a safe and productive future.

Cryptojacking
With the rise of Bitcoin and its many derivatives, people are finding new ways to trade products and services without using fiat money. Non-government controlled cryptocurrencies are produced through mining, which uses computing power to run through a series of hashes to eventually produce virtual coins. As these computations become more and more complex, cryptocurrency mining has become more dependant on Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) machines designed with a high level of computing power and a low demand for electricity. Cybercriminals have now found more lucrative ways to mine cryptocurrency without the expense of buying ASIC machines—namely, cryptojacking malware.

General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
GDPR is an EU regulation which took full effect on May 25, 2018. Detailed information is available on the GDPR site—but in a nutshell, all companies, business establishments, and non-profit organizations operating in EU-member states must now keep their customer data safe and private at all times. For every instance of non-compliance, violators face a heavy penalty of €20 million or four percent of their global income, whichever is higher. Companies and organization are now motivated to do everything possible to avoid falling for security breaches and cyberattacks of all kinds, a process that comes at a steep price.

Cloud Computing
Companies should be motivated to take advantage of cloud storage and other cloud-based services. However, there is still some question about the overall security and privacy of data stored in the Cloud. Any security breach in this area could expose vital customer data and jeopardize the financials of a business.

Ransomware
Ransomware is the biggest money-making venture for virus authors. Because they know not everyone has a reliable and credible backup system, bad actors design ransomware that encrypts vital corporate data and holds it hostage until a ransom (usually in some form of cryptocurrency) is paid to the cybercriminal. But if companies have reliable and credible backup, they cannot be effectively compromised through ransomware.

Phishing
Humans are the weakest part of the security chain, and the art of phishing seeks to take advantage of this fact. Phishing is designed to deliberately trick human operators into taking an action they would not normally take. Only user education can minimize this and reduce the chance of being duped by a phishing scam.