NetWorthy Systems Blog

Do you remember how your bank issued you a new debit or credit card with a built-in, security-enhancing chip? There are now ATMs specially designed for use with these chips. Unfortunately, the same technology that was originally meant to secure your finances can also be used against you in the form of fraudulent cash withdrawals.

Technology grows more mobile with each passing moment, and emojis have popped up in places that nobody could have dreamt of. In particular, business communications have experienced a surge of emojis, but how (and why) is this the case? Aren’t emojis unprofessional? Shouldn’t they have no place in the business world? Well, let’s explore this a bit.

The ransomware machine keeps moving forward, despite significant opposition. In particular, the ransomware tag-team duo of Petya and Mischa have steamrolled most attempts to block them from accessing critical systems, always finding ways to outsmart security professionals. Now, these ransomwares have adopted a Ransomware as a Service model, which has made significant changes to the way that this ransomware is distributed.

Businesses these days practically need to expect disaster, as even the most careful and calculated security practices could result in a data disaster. Some businesses don’t fear for their data enough, and this leads them to neglect planning for threats such as hackers, natural disasters, and user error. As the business owner, you need to stay informed about how best to handle these situations.

In the latest round of security patches released by Microsoft, 27 vulnerabilities were fixed. Affected software includes major titles like Windows, Microsoft Office, Internet Explorer, and the new Edge browser. It’s imperative that you apply these security patches as soon as you can, or else your system will be exposed to some serious threats.

If your employees are given an Android device to use for work, or if they bring in their own as a part of BYOD, you may want to pay special attention to what follows.

Online threats against healthcare organizations are currently one of the biggest cybersecurity issues. A reported 100-million-plus total medical records have been compromised, according to IBM’s 2016 Cyber Security Intelligence Index. How could a hacker profit off of accessing someone’s medical records? Simply put: ransomware.

Cloud computing may be a great asset to your business, but there are still plenty of executives that remain quite reluctant about implementing it. One of the big reasons is that security breaches are often covered with high exposure on the news, and this makes it seem like the cloud isn’t a good way to store sensitive data. Now, however, cloud computing security has reached a high point, and you can bet that the cloud has ways of enhancing IT security for your business, too.

The short, yet devastating, history of ransomware is littered with what amounts to individual horror stories. As you may well know, ransomware, is a particularly devious and potentially devastating strain of malware that, when enacted, locks a computer’s files down so that the user can’t access them. In their stead, a message is relayed that instructs them to contact a third party to pay a ransom for access to the files. This is where the threat gets its name.

Cyber security professionals and Internet users rejoice, for the “Spam King,” Sanford Wallace, has finally been sentenced for his longtime use of stolen Facebook credentials to spam other users. Between 2008 and 2009, he had stolen credentials for Facebook accounts, and then used the accounts to send credential-stealing web links. Now, he gets to spend the next two and a half years in prison, and pay an oddly-specific fine of $310,629.

There aren’t many instances of hackers targeting physical infrastructure, but the few that make themselves known tend to be quite catastrophic. Take, for example, the devastating cyber attack on the Ukrainian power infrastructure, which left thousands of citizens powerless. Now, several months later, authorities believe that other major countries could also become a target of similar attacks.

Time hasn’t been kind to the password. It’s continuously put down as one of the least secure methods of protecting systems. It’s not due to any fault of the password, though. People just have a hard time remembering long and complex passwords. To aid in security, it’s recommended that you use some sort of multi-factor authentication. While some users prefer easy SMS message two-factor authentication, there are actually many different types of multi-factor authentication available.

In a bizarre reminder of why security best practices are so critical to the world of IT, it has been reported that one of the largest collections of hacked and stolen login details are currently making the rounds in the Russian black market.

Security is a hot-button issue for all types of businesses, but cyber security is such a complex subject that it’s difficult to jam-pack its many intricacies into one blog article. Sometimes understanding just a few ways to improve your business’s security practices can be a significant benefit for your organization.

There are many types of malware out there, but few are as scary as ransomware. Imagine being struck by a threat that instantaneously locks down your files and keeps you from accessing them until you pay a certain amount of money. If your business is targeted by ransomware, would you be able to protect it from dragging your operations into a bitter pit of despair?

Any business that deals with online technology needs to be aware of the dangers that come with the territory. Hackers are more common nowadays than ever before, and organizations that don’t take a proactive approach to keeping threats out of their systems will have to suffer the consequences. Unfortunately, some organizations won’t be aware that they’ve been hacked until it’s far too late.

Businesses today are responsible for keeping the data in their care safe from hackers. There are two kinds of data that a business must protect: the information of their customers, and their own data (eg. company policies and employee information). Which of the two do you think the average business does a better job of protecting?

Small and medium-sized businesses continue to have problems shoring up their cyber security. Even with the latest solutions, like antivirus and firewalls, they still need to be wary of impending attacks. New threats are created on a daily basis, all of which want to infiltrate your network and cause harm to your business. In fact, 27.3 percent of all malware in the world was created in 2015 alone. Will we ever escape from the clutches of malware?

Google might be best known for its search engine and groups of desktop apps, but it’s also known for innovating and rattling the cages of how we live our lives. One of the ways it’s doing so is with Google Wallet, an app that’s designed to make sharing cash and money transfers online even easier. What a lot of people forget, however, is that Google Wallet, and its associated card, can still be the target of fraud.

Firewalls are one of the most common IT security measures on the market today, and for good reason. They act as the first line of defense against any incoming threats, and without them, your organization would have to deal with one data breach after another. Of course, that’s only if you’re taking advantage of a proper firewall; if not, you should seriously consider doing so as soon as possible.