A shift in cybercrime resulting in higher profile attacks

In recent weeks, there has been a surge in cyber attacks against large-scale organisations spanning across various sectors. It has been reported that these cyber attacks have targeted NATO, Sony, as well as the Royal Family website, all of which employ a diverse range of tactics.

With cyber criminals becoming more sophisticated in their attacks, it seems that many organisations are not implementing the most secure measures, which is allowing bad actors to effortlessly breach cyber defences, and extract the desired data, leaving behind a trail of destruction.

What are seeing in these attacks?

The recent and somewhat ‘chaotic’ ransomware attacks on MGM Resorts, which saw hotel keys and slot machines not working, follow a series of similar attacks that targeted renowned companies where the criminals demanded ransoms in exchange for the return of stolen data. Meanwhile, there have been some politically motivated hacking incidents that have targeted NATO and the Royal Family, orchestrated by Russian-affiliated malicious actors intent on causing disruption. Lastly, Lyca Mobile suffered a significant breach which resulted in network failures and potential unauthorised access to customer data. 

These types of cyber attacks shed light on how the cybercrime landscape is shifting. The main challenge that most organisations face is the sheer volume and diversity of attacks, and the motivations behind them. Whether it's ransomware, Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, or politically motivated disruptions, the common factor here is that systems are being breached with a slightly worrying ease. 

A prime example is the DDoS attack on the Royal Family's website. Although the frequency of DDoS attacks has decreased because most websites possess built-in tools to counter such assaults, it's concerning that a well-known site that is associated with the British Royal Family, fell victim to a relatively outdated form of attack. It leads This might signify a broader issue afflicting organisations across the nation. 

Is the skills shortage a contributing factor to these attacks?

Due to the high stress and demanding hours, the cybersecurity skills gap continues to be an ongoing contributing factor to the number of cyber attacks.

Current IT teams are trying to deal with a huge number of attacks and are finding it increasingly difficult to work out the critical issues from the rest of the noise, and in some cases, struggling to respond effectively at all. Unfortunately, it seems like this issue is only going to get worse over the coming months with cyber-criminals likely to up their efforts, as more people start to shop online with the Christmas period approaching or with the ongoing war and political difficulties in Russia.

However, monitoring potential vulnerabilities, ensuring regular patch updates, and staying educated and up-to-date about the latest threats, can be rather overwhelming, with many smaller companies being unable to implement these crucial actions into their daily, weekly, or even monthly business practices.

In order to address these challenges, it appears that some organisations are turning to consultancies for help, which can function as cybersecurity watchdogs, enhancing their in-house teams and providing expertise that might otherwise be beyond their reach. By offering cybersecurity as a Managed Service, these consultancies can help combat the evolving and escalating threat posed by cybercriminals and prepare organisations' systems to face new and emerging risks.

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