Let’s face it. Hackers have made celebrity status in the recent months. The funny thing is – many of these underground hacker groups are not doing any of this for profit. They do it for shear enjoyment and amusement. Why? Because they can. They realize the damage that they can cause to a company’s longevity and profitability. Damages that could easily be prevented if more companies placed their security as a #1 priority.
Take Lulz Security for example whose claim to fame was their recent hacks on the SonyPictures.com, compromising over the personal info, passwords, social security numbers, email addresses, home addresses, birthdays, etc. for over 1,000,000 users. Where is the data now? LulzSec posted the data on a widely available torrent, free for the entire world to download at Mediafire.com
Here’s the news from the AP:
Aside from the Sony security breach, LulzSec claims to have hacked the CIA website as well as the FBI-linked InfraGuard website.
This new wave of very public hacks exposes the horrendous state of security. The sad thing is – probably 95% of attacks could be avoided by taking preventable measures. Here are 4 Reasons Why Your Security is Failing.
1.) Lack of network monitoring. Proper network monitoring will give you an overall picture of the health of your network – and alert a network administrator when something goes wrong. These alerts should take the highest priority.
2.) Your employees are not educated on your antivirus program. The majority of viruses are downloaded directly onto employee computers. Scareware resembles an actual antivirus message, and tells the user that their system has been compromised and that they should install the program to quarantine the virus. Of course, this message is malware and has the potential to destroy your network. This simple problem could easily be avoided with proper education and a visual of what is good and what is not.
3.) No penalties in place: I can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked into a business that has had the same IT Controller for years – the same individual(s) who has either failed to prevent numerous security disasters (or caused them in the first place). While mistakes occasionally happen, it is the responsibility of all I.T. Professionals to ensure that your systems are protected and functioning at optimum levels. Would you keep an accountant on board who routinely miscalculates something as simple as your year-end taxes?
4.) Not keeping software patches up to date: This was the case for the Sony hack. Sony had web servers that went unpatched for months – that wasn’t a simple mistake. In my opinion, the problem in this case was either laziness or a lack of accountabily. However – it’s not uncommon and happens in the majority of companies relying upon their own resources. Hold your IT staff accountable, and be sure that they are updating patches – and testing them at the same time.
Through active network monitoring, employee training, keeping patches up-to-date and hiring the right IT Professional or Managed Service Provider – you will be do your organization a major justice. Protect your organization and ensure that you have the right plan and people in place.
One of the best ways of ensuring your technology is protected and securing is by hiring the right individual or organization. Download “3 Ways to Hire an IT Professional” below.
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