Nowadays, it seems like there are thousands of cyber threats out there and working online can feel like navigating a minefield.

The truth is, it IS a minefield. But if you know how to sweep for mines, you can easily come out the other side unscathed.

However, unless you’re clued up on what to look for, how will you avoid disaster? That’s why getting to know common cyber threats is key. If you can recognise when a threat may be presenting itself to you, you can save yourself from both financial and personal loss. As well as loss of reputation. 

In this blog, we share the 5 most common cyber attacks on businesses, so that you can enter the digital world with a keen eye and a sense of confidence. 

Malware 

Have you ever heard of trojans or viruses? These are malware. 

To put it simply, malware is malicious code that hackers create and use in order to access accounts, networks, and steal/use/destroy your data. Whether it’s in the form of a malicious download, spam email or something else, malware can be used to destroy and break devices, meaning businesses must fork out for replacements. 

Malware is particularly dangerous to those who work on personal devices, and with the rise of home working over the past few years, a rise in personal device use has also risen. 

As personal devices are more likely to be vulnerable to malicious downloads, business owners need to educate employees on how to protect themselves against malware. Strong antivirus and web security are also key in defending against malware – something every business should have in place.

Take a look at our Managed Cyber Security Services to see how SupPortal could help you.

Weak passwords 

When was the last time you changed your passwords?

Often, people fall into the habit of using the same password for all accounts or logins. The problem with this is that if your password is acquired or guessed correctly once, it can then be used to access all of your other accounts – affording the cyber criminal all your data.

As well as this, weak passwords are all too common. Pet names, home towns, and birthdays are obvious password choices, making them extremely guessable.

Randomised password applications and websites will combine random letters, numbers and symbols together to create an entirely unique password that is very difficult to guess. Or, you can create a random password yourself by combining uncommon words together with symbols and numbers.

We highly recommend you change your passwords every 3 months and that each of your accounts have entirely different passwords. 

Learn more about how to become a password pro in our ‘Become a password pro – tips to ensure you are secure’ blog. 

Phishing 

As one of the most damaging and widespread threats faced by businesses, phishing attacks are incredibly common. In fact, they account for 90% of all breaches faced by organisations (according to CISCO’s 2021 Cybersecurity threat trends report). 

Phishing attacks occur when a cyber criminal pretends to be a trusted contact – this could be a bank, a brand, a friend, or even a colleague – and entices the recipient to click a malicious link, provide access to private information, or to download a malicious file. 

Phishing attacks are continuously growing in popularity, and along with this grows the sophistication of the attacks. Cyber criminals are learning how to mimic brands and people with disturbing accuracy. Sometimes it takes noticing the tiny details to realise that the email or message is not legitimate. 

Familiarise yourself with common phishing techniques in our ‘How to spot a phishing scam’ blog. 

Ransomware 

Ransomware affects thousands of small businesses every year and still stands as one of the most common cyber threats. 

Rather than stealing data for personal gain, ransomware attacks block companies from accessing their own data and demand a ransom is paid in order to get it back. In this situation, it is a lose-lose for the company. They either lose money by paying the ransom, or they lose their ability to provide their services, so in fact they still lose money.

With 70% of ransomware attacks being targeted at small businesses (according to The Ransomware Taskforce), small businesses need to be particularly careful about this form of cyber attack.

Find out how you can protect your business against ransomware in our ‘Ransomware – what you can do’ blog. 

Insider threat (also known as a turncloak)

When someone within the company who has access to data slips up or makes an ignorant mistake, the results can be disastrous. This could be an employee, associate, contractor or even a previous employee, but as long as they have access to valuable company data, their actions are a risk to the company. 

To overcome this, a strong culture of security awareness is crucial. No matter how the attacker is attempting to compromise company data, employees must be able to spot the attempt early on. Or, if an attack is successful, employees must be able to identify the process happening and alert IT. 

SupPortal’s Cyber Security Awareness Training is designed to educate employees and reduce the risk of insider threats, keeping your organisation safe. 

Stay protected with SupPortal 

At SupPortal, we work to protect businesses from the threat of cyber crime. 

Whether it’s a security breach from cyber criminals, viruses, malware or even an accidental employee breach, we can help. We provide a range of CSaaS solutions including Managed Cyber Security subscriptions, Cyber Security Assessments, Cyber Security Awareness Training, Cyber Incident Response and Disaster Recovery and by helping achieve Cyber Essentials certification.

If you’d like to protect yourself and your businesses against these 5 common cyber attacks, chat to us at 02380982218.