Tag Archive for: Cyberattack

Cyberattack Are You Ready? | Fort Worth Business Press

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If you think computer security isn’t a big deal or it’s not your problem, you’re dead wrong.

  • Ransomware attacks cost businesses an estimated $300,000 per incident last year.
  • Colonial Pipeline paid hackers a $4.4 million ransom to get back online.

Can you afford to cough up thousands or millions to online blackmailers? Big or small, you’re at risk.

Join FBI Special Agent Brett Leatherman and Cybersecurity Expert Michael Moore from M3 Networks for FWBP’s webinar “Cyberattack Are You Ready.”

Learn how to keep your company safe from hackers and cyber crooks.

  • Are we facing a cybersecurity pandemic?
  • How even your business is a target.
  • How employees put your business at greater risk.
  • Can my business afford cybersecurity protection?
  • Restoring a company’s reputation following an attack.
Brett Leatherman

Brett Leatherman
Supervisory Special Agent 
Federal Bureau of Investigation

Mr. Leatherman manages a team of special agents, computer scientists, and intelligence personnel in North Texas responsible for the investigation and attribution of global national security cyber threats targeting United States interests. The FBI is the lead federal agency for investigating cyber-attacks by criminals, nation state actors, and terrorists, and the Dallas Division plays a key role in that effort.

Michael Moore
Founder and CEO
M3 Networks

Michael Moore is a solutions-focused Senior Executive, Advisor, Public Speaker, and Board Member with more than 15 years of success across the information services industry. His broad areas of expertise include network administration, account management, cloud computing, and technical support. Michael holds a leadership position as the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of M3 Networks where he oversees the company concentrating on building solutions that incorporate proactive computer maintenance, secure data protection, and responsive IT support.

Dallas FBI Field Office
https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/dallas

Ransomware Advisory
https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/126/ofac_ransomware_advisory_10012020_1.pdf

Internet Crime Complaint…

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Freight brokers urged to increase security in light of pipeline cyberattack

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The cyberattack that temporarily shut down the Colonial Pipeline this month serves as a stark reminder that all industries are prone to security threats. A single attack brought the nation to a crawl. Just think of the damage one could cause your operation.

In today’s data-rich transportation and logistics industry, information flows freely from network to network. This is especially true for freight brokerages, which transact large amounts of information both electronically and in the cloud. 

In light of the recent cyberattack, Jamie Cannon, Reliance Partners’ vice president of third-party logistics (3PL), urges freight brokers to examine their cyber risk and insure themselves against damages resulting from such attacks.

Regardless of size, even companies that aren’t household names find themselves victims of digital sabotage, leaving some with heavy financial losses. Though they seem random in nature, these attacks are very much calculated. 

Freight brokers, according to Cannon, hold treasure troves of knowledge on their customers, including sensitive pricing and payment information from shippers and motor carriers. She attests that this puts brokers at an even greater risk than trucking companies.

It’s still unclear how exactly Colonial Pipeline’s network was infiltrated, but cyberattacks are typically perpetuated by similar methods.  

While firewalls are exceptionally good at preventing unauthorized access to one’s network, many hackers gain entry when the door is opened to them. All it takes is the miscue of one employee to inadvertently welcome a host of bad individuals, ultimately compromising the entire network. 

Cannon said, added that the work-from-home business model has put many companies at risk since networks are being accessed from nonsecure locations. 

Phishing is a common method used by hackers to gain access to company data. This often involves baiting unsuspecting employees with emails that can look quite legitimate. “A lot of people are opening [suspicious] emails. There’s certain emails that they shouldn’t respond to, like urgent gift card or wire transfer requests from someone posing as their CEO or…

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Major Cyber-Attack on Irish Health System Causes Commercial Concern

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On May 20, 2021 there was a major ransomware attack on the Irish health system. The centralized HSE (Health Service Executive) which provides and manages healthcare for the Irish population was targeted on May 14, and has seen significant disruption since. It has described the attack as a ‘zero-day threat with a brand new variant of the Conti ransomware.’

The attack has been attributed to a Russian criminal group based in the St. Petersburg area, Wizard Spider. This group of 80 hackers is believed responsible for the attack earlier this year on FatFace, the UK retailer who is reported as having paid a ransom of £1.45m. The Minister with responsibility for eGovernment has described it as “possibly the most significant cybercrime attack on the Irish State” and the Taoiseach (head of government) has repeatedly stated that the State will not pay a ransom.

It appears likely that the attack may have emanated from a phishing campaign exploiting the current stresses on healthcare workers and the Coving remote working structures in place across circa 80,000 HSE devices. Emergency departments and urgent care centers remain operational as do many hospital services, however delays are accumulating.

In addition to patient files, the data stolen also includes HSE internal files, reportedly including on equipment purchase and minutes of meetings. Contractors to the HSE may be impacted and their commercial arrangements potentially at risk of disclosure. So far, the Financial Times has claimed it has seen screenshots of 27 HSE files released on the dark web in recent days. The media attention has, to date, been on the human side (the 27 files disclosed so far include 12 patient files) more so than on the potential for commercial disclosures. The issue is an evolving one as the hackers seek to pressure the Irish governments non-payment of ransom position. They are now believed to have issued a deadline on May 24 for payment of the ransom.

The HSE have included the following information for suppliers in their overall health service disruption notice.

Information for HSE suppliers and contractors

The HSE have included the following information for suppliers in their overall health service…

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3 Security Stocks to Watch Post Cyberattack on U.S Pipeline

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The recent ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline Co. has resurfaced the rising threat that cyber crime poses worlwide. This followed the December 2020 hacking incident at SolarWinds supply chain.

Although heavy reliance on technology by business as well as individuals drove operational efficiency and eased our lives, the same increased vulnerability to cyber offences

Rapid Automation Resulting in More Cyber Raids

This simply underlines the fact that the frequent use of technology is directly proportional to the possibilities of cybercrime. Therefore, the more technology will be leveraged, higher will be the chances of virtual breaches.

Notably, the COVID-19 pandemic further fuelled the incidence of cyber onslaughts as businesses of all sizes are transitioning their operations to various online platforms. Now from working to spending, education to entertainment, and even healthcare and much more went virtual causing high technology percolation in everyday lives. This puts not only businesses but also schools, hospitals and other organizations at the receiving end of online assaults.

While public institutions and large companies have always been the target of hackers, now smaller organizations with lower security standards are reaching their radar.

Further, the advent of 5G will enable other devices to connect to the Internet, thereby expanding the scope for Iot and AI. While AI and IoT will simplify things, it will also aggravate the rate of cyber crime with accessibility of wider options as more and more activity becomes technology reliant.

Cyber Attack to Grow by Leaps and Bounds

Cybersecurity Ventures expects global cybercrime costs to grow 15% per year over the next five years, reaching $10.5 trillion, annually, by 2025, up from $3 trillion in 2015.

The United States is already hard-hit by cyber violations. In 2018, an FBI agent said that every American citizen should expect that all their data (personally identifiable information) is stolen and is on the dark web.

Research firm Gartner forecasts that the corporate computer security market will grow more than 10%, on average, annually through 2024, outpacing the 3% growth rate of spending in the information technology…

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