Cybersecurity has become a significant concern for everyone. Cyber threats are a day-to-day struggle for businesses. Trends reveal that a massive spike in hacking and data breaching from various sources are considered significantly common in today's workplace.
Let's go through some facts that prove that cyber threats are the ill omen for the online businesses.
- Nearly 31% of businesses have encountered cyber attacks on their operational technology infrastructure.
- According to 2017 statistics, every year there is an attempt of more than 130 large-scale targeted breaches in the United States. Interestingly, the rate of the violations is swelling up by 27% per year.
- Cyber attacks by ransomware have grown exponentially at a rate of 350% annually.
Reading the facts of cyber attacks may have alerted you. Let’s take a deep dive to learn about some common threats that you encounter every day and how to counter such threats.
Situation: Data Breach
It is a cyber attack to successfully infiltrate the servers of the companies to extract sensitive and valuable information like phone number, credit card details, account number, etc. Hackers use various loopholes of web services and servers to access the data remotely.
Fact: Worldwide the average expense of a data breach is $3.86 million.
Solution: 2-way verification
It is the smartest way to save yourself from the data breach. It helps the person by providing the password as well as the cryptographic token to secure the login process while preventing unauthorised access.
Situation: Cross-Site Request Forgery
It is an attack vector that outwits a web browser into performing an unwanted task in a user logged-in application. It is also known as XSRF, Sea Surf or Session Riding. A successful attack can be catastrophic for both the business as well as the user. It can cause unauthorised fund transfers, changed passwords and stolen session cookies. It can ruin the relationship between the client and the company.
Fact: Everyday, 1 in 13 web requests lead to cross-site forgery. Also, in 2017, nearly 61% of the breach victims were organisations with under 1000 employees.
Solution: Upgradation of Firewall
Firewall is the first line of defence to prevent such forgery. It blocks unauthorised or remote access that can decline the chances of eavesdropping. Moreover, it is also better to close the web application when not in use as it can secure the username and passwords from getting leaked.
Situation: Web Scraping
This process utilises bots to extract content and data from a website. Web scraping collects underlying HTML code and data from the database. The scraper has the potential to replicate entire website content for illegal purposes, like the undercutting of prices and the theft of copyrighted content. An online entity ambushed by a scraper can endure severe financial disasters, especially if it’s a business heavily relying on competitive pricing models or dealing in content marketing.
Fact: Around 21% of the files are not protected in any way.
Solution: HTML fingerprint
The filtration process begins with the granular examination of HTML headers. This technique can prove to be game-changing as it provides clues, whether a visitor is a human or a bot. It safeguards us from potential malicious and corrupt ransom wares. Constant comparison of header signatures from numerous databases can prevent the company from web scraping.
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