What Is A Business Cyber Attack?

In the modern world, business revolves around digitisation and the internet. Maintaining a high level of cyber security is therefore key in avoiding breaches, vulnerability, and cyber-attacks, particularly if your business deals with highly-sensitive information. Yet on average, 39% of UK businesses report breaches in their system each year. Understanding the process of cyber attacks can hugely help in avoiding recurring incidents. In this guide, we’ll talk you through what a business cyber-attack is, the various types of attacks that can occur, and how to prevent such attacks in future.

What Is A Cyber Attack?

A cyber attack is an assault on computers or a network in an attempt to steal electronic data, disable the system, or launch further attacks. Typically, these attacks will be conducted by cybercriminals who can target individuals, organisations, groups, or even governments. Attackers will use any means necessary to unearth vulnerabilities in your system’s defence, even going so far as searching your social media pages for any available information on your organisation, system, and personnel. It is therefore crucial that your employee’s online profiles are appropriately protected, as well as your business cybersecurity.

Types Of Business Cyber Attacks

Cyber attacks can be split into two categories: targeted and un-targeted. There are different approaches for both attacks with varying aims of the cybercriminals. With un-targeted cyber attacks, criminals will target as many devices, users, or servers as possible regardless of who the victim is. In targeted cyber attacks, however, an organisation is specifically targeted with a tailored approach to exploit the system in the most effective way possible. These are often more deadly than un-targeted attacks as the criminal has purposely targeted your business with methods which will do the most damage to your system. Common examples of these attacks are outlined below.

Un-Targeted Business Cyber Attacks

• Phishing – sending fraudulent communications (often emails) imitating a reputable source asking for sensitive information
• Water holing – creating a fake website or compromising an existing one to target visitors to the site
• Ransomware – a type of malware to prevent users from accessing their devices and encrypting files

Targeted Business Cyber Attacks

• Deploying a botnet – delivering a DDOS (Distributed Denial of Service) to infect malware and cease control
• Spear-phishing – sending communications (often emails) with an attachment containing malicious software or a link to such software to target individuals
• Subverting the supply chain – attacking equipment or software being sent to an organisation

How To Prevent A Cyber Attack

Luckily, there are multiple strategies to protect businesses from cyber-attacks. For larger organisations, there are additional strategies that might be required to ensure complete cybersecurity, though the tactics mentioned below are always a good idea to have in place for organisations of any size.

1.Multi-Factor Authentication

A great way of preventing cyber attacks is to use multi-factor authentication. Anyone can implement this into their systems and accounts, which can be a hugely beneficial method of deterring potential cyber criminals. If you only use a single password, this can quickly become compromised and expose your data. Multi-factor authentication is therefore an easy-to-implement protective cyber strategy.

2.Robust Internal Controls

Ensuring that your business has strong internal controls in place is essential when it comes to cybersecurity. Access controls for instance can be immediately updated once employees leave with new passwords or codes. This way of monitoring your system will result in a higher level of security, ultimately making it harder for future threats to succeed.

3.Install Firewalls And Antivirus Software

This might seem like an obvious prevention method, but installing antivirus software and firewalls can be one of the primary defences against security breaches. Not only should each computer in your business have these defences installed but they should also be updated regularly to avoid potential vulnerabilities.

Implement Cybersecurity Methods Today

Get in touch with one of our colleagues at Lucidica today to talk through our various cybersecurity packages to suit your organisation as best as possible. We offer regularly scheduled security audits, dedicated engineers, and a CyberEssentials certificate amongst other benefits.