The Rubber Ducky Hacking Tool is Back
The new rubber ducky hacking tool is a potentially dangerous piece of hardware.
For millions of people, the rubber ducky is a benign reminder of childhood. Depending on when you were a child, the rendition of Sesame Street’s Ernie singing “Rubber Duckie, you’re the one,” is ingrained in your mind every time you hear the term. Unfortunately, the Rubber Ducky we are going to tell you about today has only fond recollection for people who are looking to breach networks they aren’t authorized to access or deliver malware payloads that are designed to cause havoc.
What is the Rubber Ducky?
The Rubber Ducky is a device that looks like a regular flash drive that you would use to transfer files from one PC to another. We’ve all used them, and with most of us moving to cloud-based platforms, they don’t seem to be as popular as they once were. Well, despite that notion, the USB flash drive industry is growing at a pretty impressive 7% year-over-year and is currently a $7+ billion industry. That means there are a lot of USB flash drives being created every year and that means that there are millions of them just floating around.
The Rubber Ducky is more than your average USB flash drive, however. It looks like one, but when it is plugged into a computer, it is read as a simple accessory like a keyboard. This means that any defensive measure that is set up to thwart potentially dangerous data transmission is already worked around when the device gets plugged in, making it much easier for the device to work for the hacker’s end goals, whatever they are. Any keystroke taken while the device is open, is trusted, making the sky the proverbial limit when it comes to device access.
What Kind of Threat Is the Modern Rubber Ducky?
Any USB dongle needs to be carefully considered before inserting it into your computer, but the Rubber Ducky is designed to overcome the limitations of previous versions of the hardware. The new version makes a major upgrade in that it runs on the “DuckyScript” programming language that the device will use to create demands on any target machine. Other iterations of the Rubber Ducky were limited to writing what are known as “keystroke sequences”, the new DuckyScript is a feature-rich language, which lets users write functions, store variables, and use logic to make it possible to carry out complex computations.
Now the Rubber Ducky can determine which operating system is running a machine and deploy code that allows for hackers to get into the appropriate software. It can also mask automated executions by adding a delay between keystrokes to make the computing system think that it is human. Most intrusively, it can steal data from any target by encoding it in binary, giving users the ability to extract critical information (such as saved authentication) with ease.
What You Can Do
The best practice here is to not allow strange USB dongles to be placed in your device’s USB drives. Unless you know exactly where the device has come from and what is on it, avoiding interactions with it is the best way to keep away anything unsavory that happens to be on the device to interact with your computer’s OS, and by extension, your network.
Being wary of hardware is just one part of keeping your business and personal information secure. Point North Networks can help build a cybersecurity strategy that takes into account all types of malware deployment methodology, keeping you from any problematic experiences with your IT. Give us a call today at 651-234-0895 to learn more.
Frequently Asked Questions About Rubber Ducky Hacking Tool
How fast can Rubber Ducky type?
Rubber ducky is known to type at an incredible speed of up to 1,000 words per minute, which is why it can easily change the class codes of the target machine and hack it within a few seconds.
What coding language does Rubber Ducky use?
USB Rubber Ducky uses DuckyScript as its source code, as well as its programming language. Using this language, the ducky types keystroke injection payloads into computers at incredible speeds.
Is the USB rubber ducky hacking tool available online?
Yes. Unfortunately, the average USB flash drive with a rubber ducky tool is available online, at a measly cost of $45.
What is a Security Operations Center?
The way workplaces around the globe are functioning has undergone a sea change. With the hybrid work culture and work-from-anywhere settings becoming the new normal, offices have had to adapt to a new style of infrastructural arrangement. This entire shift of working remotely has also raised serious concerns about data security and network safety with cyber attacks and data theft becoming a widespread menace. In such a rapidly changing scenario, companies must find a way to tackle this ever-hovering threat and develop a system that will not only keep the systems, networks and data safe but also keep the workflow smooth and well-integrated.
With cybersecurity a priority for every business that depends on their IT, there are a lot of different strategies being utilized out there to keep threats off of networks and data safe. One of the most advanced strategies being used today is enlisting a service that runs a Security Operations Center (SOC). Today, we’ll investigate what a SOC is and how it works to keep security threats at bay.
What is a Security Operations Center?
The Security Operations Center is a lot like the Network Operations Center (NOC), but its whole purpose is to monitor computing networks and devices and eliminate threats to their efficient operation. While that description may seem simple, business computing infrastructures are typically complex with a lot of end users, making network and device security a complicated endeavor.
Today’s businesses have computing infrastructures and networks that run around the clock, and the SOC is staffed to facilitate that 24/7/365 demand for security monitoring and services. Working hand-in-hand with your NOC (and perhaps other IT administrators depending on the complexity of your business’ IT), the SOC typically handles the overarching cybersecurity strategy.
Typically, businesses want their IT to align with how they want to run their business and part of that is maintaining uptime and keeping threats off of the endpoints, networks, and the vast amount of infrastructure that makes up the network. After all, all it takes is one vulnerability to be exploited and it can create major problems. The SOC deploys a myriad of tools and strategies all designed to do one thing: stay ahead of threats to the network.
How the SOC Operates
As we stated previously, the SOC functions much like a NOC in that its main purpose is comprehensive around-the-clock monitoring and notification. If something goes wrong on the network, the SOC will log the issue and do what it can to mitigate the issue. As these things happen it will notify the IT administrator (the NOC) of the issue to keep them in the loop. Let’s take a brief look at some of the services the SOC will provide:
-
Complete assessment
The discovery process is a major part of how the SOC can be most effective. In being aware of all the hardware, applications, and other tools on the network(s) your business needs, the SOC can ensure that everything is monitored continuously. This enables the designing of apt intrusion prevention systems that can help strengthen the organization’s security posture.
-
Continuous monitoring
Not only will the SOC monitor software and traffic trends, it will also monitor user and system behaviors as a way to identify issues.
-
Thorough logging
Keeping large computing networks secure is a big job, and a lot of your executive and managerial team don’t have the knowledge or the time to stay on top of threats as they come in. Keeping logs of every action the SOC makes, including communications with vendors/employees and steps taken to keep the network and infrastructure free from threats is a great way to provide a layer of oversight to the security process. It’s also an important factor in staying compliant with any regulatory mandates.
-
Comprehensive Incident Response and Investigation
This is where the SOC really becomes a major benefit for the security of your company’s IT. Not only do SOC technicians respond quickly to any security incidents, they also work fast to investigate what caused the issue in the first place. Going further than your typical IT management, the main benefit of the SOC is the mitigation of efficiency-sapping issues such as malware and other manners of attack.
Services of a Security Operations Center
Now that we know how important Security Operations Center is and the benefits it provides, let’s look at all the services it renders:
Prepare, Plan, and Prevent
To ensure that everything is secured, the SOC needs to have an exhaustive list of everything that needs to be protected within or outside the data center. This includes databases, applications, cloud services, servers, endpoints, etc. This asset inventory management also includes the tools required to protect the assets like antivirus, anti-malware, firewalls, anti-ransomware tools, monitoring software, etc. Many a time, asset discovery tools are used to manage these tasks.
Once the security tools are in place, the SOC must perform preventive maintenance to maximize these tools. The preventive measures include software upgrades and application of software patches, regular firewall upgradation, whitelists and blacklists, and security procedures and processes. A SOC must also develop a system backup process to ensure that the business continues to run even in case of a data breach, cyber-attack or cybersecurity threat.
If any such incident does present itself, the SOC must have a contingency incident response plan in hand. This plan defines activities and roles and responsibilities in case of an emergency. In addition to this, the SOC must also chart out the parameters that will measure the efficiency of these contingency plans in terms of handling the emergency.
Once all the plans are in place, they should be followed by regular testing to ensure that the plans are effective and capable of handling a crisis. This can be done by performing vulnerability assessments – it is a thorough assessment that tests and detects every resource’s vulnerability to potential threats and the cost associated with them. These tests also allow teams to rectify and upgrade any loopholes in the system so that when a real scenario presents itself, the team and the systems are best prepared to handle it.
Since technology is rapidly changing, it is important for the SOC to keep its security solutions updated to tackle even the most advanced threat intelligence. They must keep themselves abreast with the latest technology news, types of cyberattacks happening across the world, and even the dark web that also poses a potential threat to an organization.
Monitor, Detect, and Respond
One of the main aims of a SOC is to provide continuous and round-the-clock monitoring. It monitors the entire IT infrastructure including servers, applications, software, computing devices, networks, and cloud workload at all times to detect any suspicious activity.
A majority of SOCs depend on a technology called system information and event management (SIEM). It monitors and keeps an aggregate of all kinds of alerts and telemetry from the company’s software and hardware to analyze this data to detect future threats. Another advanced form of technology that many SOCs are utilizing these days is extended detection and response technology (XDR). This technology is more advanced as it not only provides more detailed alert and telemetry data but also automates incidence detection and response.
Storing and analysing log data is yet another important exercise that SOCs perform. While most IT departments store log data, not all of them analyze it. It is this analysis that makes a whole lot of difference. A SOC will have the ability to study the log data and decipher anomalies and suspicious activities. Most hackers and cybercriminals thrive on the fact that not every company stores and analyses log data. This allows their viruses and malware to run undetected in the systems for weeks and months, damaging the systems to a large extent.
This is usually followed by threat detection and incident response from the SOCs. Modern systems are able to integrate Artificial Intelligence into their threat detection repertoire that makes spotting any suspicious activity more efficient. In response to these detected threats, a SOC can take the following actions:
Investigating the root cause of the threat. This helps them determine the vulnerability that let the hackers run their malware and access the system. Other factors like bad passwords, or poor implementation of policies are also taken into account
- Disconnecting or shutting down all weak endpoints
- Stopping or isolating compromised areas in the network or routing the network traffic differently
- Stopping or pausing applications and processes that are below par
- Removing files that are damaged or infected
- Running anti-virus or malware software
- Withdrawing passwords that can be used internally as well as externally
Recovery, Improvement, and Compliance
The recovery process involves removing the identified threat and then working on the affected asset to move them back to the state they were before being infected. This includes restoring, and reconnecting disks, end-user devices and other similar endpoints, wiping, restarting applications and processes, and restoring network traffic. In case of a cyberattack or ransomware attack, the recovery process may involve isolating the backup systems, and resetting all the passwords and other authentication certifications.
Once this step is complete, the SOC works on stopping similar threats from reoccurring by using the intelligence gained from this incident to resolve the vulnerabilities, updating policies and processes, selecting new security tools, and revising the entire incident plan. The SOC may also work towards finding out if the said cybersecurity threat indicates a changing or new trend that they must be prepared for in the future.
These steps are followed by compliance management. The SOC must ensure that all applications, systems, and security tools and processes are in compliance with the data privacy regulations like CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act), PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, GDPR (Global Data Protection Regulation), and HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act). The SOC must then notify the regulation authorities, law enforcement agents, and other parties about the occurrence and retain the data for evidence and auditing.
Key Members of the Security Operations Center
The SOC is an important part of any organization, whether in-house or outsourced. There are some key members that comprise this team and they all play an important role in ensuring that an organization’s data is safe and secured.
SOC Manager
The SOC Manager is responsible for overseeing the entire SOC team, and the security operations, and then reports it to the company’s chief information security office
Security Engineer
These engineers are responsible for building and managing the company’s security structure. A lot of what they do includes evaluating, testing, recommending, executing and upkeeping security tools and technologies
Security Analyst
These analysts, also called security investigators or incident responders are the first ones to respond to any cybersecurity threat. They detect, analyze and prioritize threats, identify the applications and processes impacted by the threat, and then take appropriate action to minimize or eradicate the impact of the threat
Threat Hunters
They are also referred to as expert security analysts, who master at detecting and controlling advanced threats, threat variants and new threats that might have gone past the automated detection systems
While these are the core members of the SOC, bigger organizations may also have other team members like the Director of Incident Response (these professionals communicate and coordinate incident response), Chief Information Security Officer
and foreign investigators (they have a stronghold on detecting and analysing damaged devices during a cybersecurity incident).
Challenges SOCs Face and the Possible Solutions
A SOC is a team that identifies, mitigates, and improves systems after a cyber threat. Since the team works in challenging conditions, there are several difficulties they face that must be addressed and resolved immediately so that SOC can efficiently manage its core responsibilities. Here are some challenges that SOC faces and how they can overcome them.
Limited Access to Talented Professionals
In the world of SOC environment, there is a huge shortage of talented security professionals and the demand for them is quite high, especially now that cybersecurity is becoming a huge crisis. In such a situation, SOCs have their work cut out and the demand for their services and workload may easily overwhelm them. To tackle this situation, companies must identify talent from within their organization and look at upskilling those professionals. The SOCs must also keep a backup for all positions so that if a position goes vacant, they can fill it up with the standby alternative.
Advanced and Sophisticated Attacks
The world of cybercrimes is evolving at a rapid pace. Today’s hackers and cybercriminals continuously find new ways to attack systems by using advanced malware that traditional security systems cannot detect. This requires every information security operations center to be on it toes all the time and be prepared to tackle the most advanced cyberattacks. The best way to handle this situation is to deploy anomaly detection or implement tools that have the capability of machine learning. This will allow SOCs to detect and flag off cyber threats more efficiently.
Large Amounts of Data and Congested Networks
There has been a huge surge in the amount of data every organization now deals with. And securing, analysing, and deciphering this astronomical amount of data is a huge challenge for SOCs. Automated systems are the best tools that SOCs must use to manage this data.
Threat & Alert Exhaustion
The larger the amount of data available, the more analysis is done by SOCs. This means that there are regular anomalies occurring in different systems, developing a sense of fatigue in the SOC team members. From this huge number of anomalies occurring on a regular basis, not all will provide the right direction for developing a security intelligence system, distracting them from their core work. SOCs must develop systems that can filter high-intensity anomalies from the ones that don’t require immediate attention. Behavioral analytics tools can also help in ensuring that the SOC is concentrating on the right kind of anomalies and not wasting its time on low-fidelity alerts.
Unknown Threats
It is not always possible to identify unknown threats through conventional signature-based detection, firewalls, and endpoint detection. Therefore. SOCs must devise a different and more efficient method by improving their signature, rules, and threshold-based detection of threats. This can be done by using behavior analytics.
Security Tool Overload
Since cybersecurity is becoming a huge concern, companies end up implementing multiple security tools. These tools are often disconnected from each other and don’t work in tandem. SOCs must deploy more integrated and centralized monitoring systems so that every threat is effectively detected and resolved.
Security is important for every organization, and they must ensure proper SOCs are implemented to make the processes, data, and information secure against highly-advanced cybercrimes in today’s age. With data requirements skyrocketing in today’s modern workplaces, SOC is important for organizations to detect threats and respond to them quickly.
If you think your business could use a Security Operations Center service to keep your growing network and infrastructure clean from threats and working for your business, give Point North Networks, Inc., a call today at 651-234-0895. We are a trusted managed security service providers, and can facilitate your business with the best-in-class SOC teams to help you avert any unwanted cybersecurity incidents.
“No More Ransom” is Leading the Fight Against Ransomware Abroad
Ransomware is one of the more dangerous threats out there today, and since it is so prominent and dangerous, it is a popular choice amongst hackers. To combat this threat, a community has formed around the cause, encouraging users to not pay the ransom by providing free malware removal tools for the most popular ransomware threats.
Europol, a European Union law enforcement agency, is in charge of this initiative, called No More Ransom. The agency has helped over 1.5 million victims of ransomware overcome the attack and recover their files without paying the ransom. These victims have saved an estimated $1.5 billion dollars, which is a considerable amount of money to keep out of hackers’ coffers.
No More Ransom began in 2016 in collaboration with the Dutch National Police and other cybersecurity and IT companies. It began with only four ransomware decryption tools, but now, they provide 136 free decryption tools to take on 165 different ransomware variants.
Still, ransomware is a problem, and the fact that it requires this kind of special attention means that you need to take it seriously.
Why You Should Never Pay the Ransom
Hackers use ransomware because it makes people pay up simply because it’s the easiest way to solve the problem. Unfortunately, it is rarely that simple, and even those who do pay the ransom suffer from unforeseen consequences.
Further complicating this decision is the fact that those who pay the ransom are effectively funding further attacks and reinforcing the fact that ransomware works. Simply put, hackers will be more likely to attack with ransomware if they know people are scared enough to pay up, and with more resources at their disposal, they can expand their reach and infect even more victims.
This is why we advocate for not paying the ransom. In the heat of the moment, it’s not always so clear, but we urge anyone infected by ransomware, businesses included, to slow down and consider the repercussions of their actions. There are situations where you might feel like you have no choice but to pay, particularly in double-extortion situations where the threat of online leaks of your data is imminent, but we assure you that you always have a choice in the matter.
Instead, You Should Call Us!
If you become the target of ransomware, we suggest you call Point North Networks at 651-234-0895. We can walk you through the appropriate next steps to address ransomware on your network.
Granted, it’s easier to prevent ransomware in the first place than to deal with an active threat, so we also recommend that you outfit your network with top-notch security solutions. Compound these with proper employee and end-user training to minimize the possibility of ransomware striking your company. While there is never a guarantee, the odds of it crippling your business will be significantly less with these steps in mind.
Get started today by calling us at 651-234-0895.
A Router Password Repository Helps Keep Access Secure
What do you do if you have forgotten your wireless router’s password? You could restore the router back to its default settings, of course, but what if you have, like a dummy, never changed the router’s password in the first place? This Internet password repository could be your saving grace.
RouterPasswords.com
RouterPasswords.com is a website built to document default usernames and passwords for wireless routers. It’s run by a community of users for a community of users. Essentially, anyone can submit their default username and password for their router to help anyone out who may have forgotten it somewhere down the line. They make a point to highlight that the username and password of the router is not the one set by your Internet service provider–rather, they want the factory-set default credentials. Once the credentials have been reviewed by an administrator, they are added to the online repository.
It’s also worth mentioning that this site can be helpful from a technician’s perspective as well, as identifying the default username and password for a device can mean less work and less time spent troubleshooting an issue, if that is indeed the problem at hand.
In addition to having the largest default router password repository on the Internet (according to them, at least), the website also provides tips and tricks for how to manage router settings, reviews for the latest wireless routing technologies, and news related to wireless technology.
There is a Dark Side to This Website Existing
Of course, there is also the negative consequence of a website like this existing in that, if you can use it, so can anyone else on the Internet—hackers included. Imagine that you are a hacker and you’re trying to find the path of least resistance into a wireless network. You notice that the device’s wireless network name was never changed or set up beyond the factory default, so you assume that the wireless network’s password is also the factory default.
From there, well, you can guess where this story goes.
You should always change your wireless network’s name and password for this very reason. Tools like this exist to make users’ lives easier, but they inadvertently also make the lives of hackers easier, too.
Reinforce Your Wireless Practices with Us!
Point North Networks can of course help you shore up any weaknesses that might exist in your business’ wireless network policies and connections. With us on your side, you’ll have a staunch ally in the fight against cybercrime. To learn more, contact us at 651-2340895 today.
Endpoint Protection – A Crucial Missing Piece from Many Enterprise Network Servers
Almost 20% of Enterprise Windows Servers Lack Endpoint Protection… Does Yours?
What is Endpoint Security?
Endpoint Security, as the name suggests, is the phenomenon of securiting endpoints, i.e. the end user devices including but not limited to computers, laptops and mobile devices against dynamic security incidents, data breaches, file based malware attacks, suspicious behavior as well as cybersecurity threats.
At one point in time, endpoint security simply comprised traditional antivirus software, however, with the changing dynamics and emerging threats, today endpoint protection platforms offer a more comprehensive protection.
Who Needs Endpoint Protection?
While most small-scale businesses believe that only their large-scale counterparts require extensive endpoint protection, the fact of the matter is endpoint protection platforms are a must for organizations of all sizes! After all, hackers, masterminds behind organized crimes and evolving zero day threats are a modern-day bane for one and all. Hence, it can be said without a doubt that it is crucial that all enterprise networks are secured.
And when we emphasize the need for network security, we want to stress that the chosen endpoint security solutions should offer extensive security features as well as automation capabilities to ensure the protection of corporate devices from potential cyber threats.
Why is Endpoint Protection Important?
There are numerous endpoint protection features that make an EPP an indispensable part of cybersecurity.
In today’s times, data is considered to be an organization’s most valuable asset and a data breach can prove to be an irreaprable loss. Endpoint solutions enable the protection of sensitive data, and ensures that it remains safe, irrespective of the potential cyber threats.
The rise in number of devices that use network access, as well as the types of endpoints, have further highlighted the importance of endpoint protection. Then again, it has become imperative for organizations to offer an endpoint security solution with remote management capabilities to ensure that hackers are unable to gain access to data and other sensitive information from employees who have opted for remote work. Thankfully, sophisticated endpoint security solutions are more than capable of offering such extensive protection, as they are bestowed with unmatched investigation and remediation capabilities.
We’re not shy about sharing how important it is for a business to have comprehensive cybersecurity throughout its entire infrastructure. That’s why we wanted to share what some recent data has shown about the importance of having visibility into your infrastructure.
Spoiler alert: it’s really, really important.
Data Shows that Enterprises Suffer from Considerable Vulnerabilities
Compiled by Sevco Security, the State of the Cybersecurity Attack Surface report took data from over 500,000 IT assets. This data, compiled from enterprise-level businesses, revealed that a substantial number of the assets these businesses rely on are missing critical endpoint protections or aren’t being actively patched.
According to Sevco Security’s research, the businesses they surveyed were lacking endpoint protections at a rate of 12%, while 5% of them were lacking enterprise patch management. Compounding these issues, 19% of Windows servers were missing endpoint protections.
Furthermore, “stale” IT—assets that are present in the security control console and register as installed on a device, but haven’t checked back in for a few weeks—is a small but serious issue for these enterprise organizations. 3% of the IT assets have stale endpoint protections, while 1% have stale patch management. However, since they are supposedly accounted for, these risks are harder to spot and more likely to create issues.
Of course, these findings were all based on research into enterprise-level companies, with enterprise-level capabilities. Now, just consider what that suggests about the small or medium-sized businesses and their comparative capabilities.
Endpoint Security and Antivirus Programs
Traditional antivirus solutions are an important facet of endpoint security. While an antivirus program may not always protect individual devices and servers, when combined with endpoint protection, the network security threats can be curbed to the maximum possible extent. This two-proged approach enables the protection of individual devices, as we as of the network that they are connected to.
Trust Us to Help Prevent These Vulnerabilities from Presenting Themselves in Your Business
Part of our proactive remote monitoring and maintenance services is to catch these kinds of issues before they result in larger problems for your business. To learn more about how we accomplish this, give us a call at 651-234-0895 today and we will help you with the most reliable endpoint protection solution!
Frequently Asked Questions About Endpoint Protection
How can Endpoint Protection Solutions help?
A reliable Endpoint Security Software can offer multiple benefits including the following
- It can help ensure that only trusted devices can connect to your network
- It can ensure the safety of endpoints for remote devices accessing the network
- It can help avert network security threats by continuous monitoring of endpoints
- It can detect malicious activity and malware, and prevent them from harming your network
- It can help you gain deep visibility across all your endpoints and their activities
What is EDR?
EDR is short for “Endpoint Detection and Response”. It is essentially an endpoint security solution which enables the continuous monitoring of the devices of the end users, in a bid to detect and repond to online threats in a timely manner. In some cases EDR is also known as “Endpoint Threat Detection and Response”.
What is XDR?
XDR is short for extended detection and response. It is yet another endpoint security solution that enables the collection of data related to security threats from isolated security tools across the technology stack of an organization. It is done to ensure quicker and more extensive investigation, threat hunting, threat prevention as well as response.
What is the difference between EPP and EDR?
EPP refers to ‘Endpoint Protection Platform’. EPP is a proactive endpoint security solution that prevents security threats. On the other hand, EDR refers to ‘Endpoint Detection and Response’. It is a reactive tool for protecting endpoints. It effectively detected and reponds to threats have may have been missed by other security tools deployed within your network security. An advanced endpoint security platform offers an optimal combination of EPP and EDR for enterprise network security.
What are the components of endpoint security?
To provide comprehensive protection across multiple endpoint devices and operating systems, a reliable Endpoint Protection Platforms (EPP) software usually comprises of few or all of the essential components listed below-
- Machine-learning classification
- Antimalware and antivirus protection
- Proactive web security
- Data classification and data loss prevention
- Integrated firewall
- Email gateway
- Actionable threat forensics
- Insider threat protection
- Centralized endpoint management
- Endpoint, email and disk encryption
Security Doesn’t Always Have to Be a Grind
At first glance, cybersecurity might seem incredibly complicated and difficult to understand, but even a baseline understanding of some of the principles of cybersecurity can go a long way toward protecting your business. Let’s discuss some of the common-sense ways you can keep your business secure, even if you don’t have an internal IT department to ask for help from.
Keep Your Antivirus and Security Tools Updated
What’s better than eliminating a threat from your network? Stopping it from getting that far entirely. With antivirus, firewalls, and other security measures in place, you can keep your business secure from the majority of threats before they even become a problem in the first place.
Use a VPN
In case you or someone else on your team has to travel, or if you have a team that works remotely, a VPN is incredibly valuable. Public Wi-fi is notorious for being quite dangerous, and a virtual private network can offer a safe haven for you to access the Internet without fear of being observed by any onlookers.
Utilize Multi-Factor Authentication
You can take your security practices to the next level through the use of multi-factor authentication. A password can only do so much in today’s threat landscape, so you should back it up with biometrics, generated PINs, and other secondary measures that can make things much more difficult for any would-be hacker.
Use a Password Manager
We know you’ve heard it a thousand times; “always use a different password for each and every one of your accounts to maximize security.” While this should be practiced, it can be difficult to observe if you don’t have a password manager keeping tabs on each of your credentials. Plus, let’s face it, you don’t want to rely on your browser’s password management options if you can help it.
Avoid Phishing Scams
While it would certainly be amazing to win the lottery, a free vacation, or catch some juicy gossip in your email inbox, the fact of the matter is that phishing emails know that these kinds of temptations make you want to click on links in emails, regardless of how likely you think they might be. Other tactics used include fearmongering and threats, which aren’t nearly as fun to receive, but are equally as effective, if not more so under the right circumstances. Either way, you should use extreme scrutiny when navigating messages from unknown or unsolicited sources—especially if they contain links or attachments.
Let Us Help Your Business Keep Itself Safe
While you can certainly do all of the above on your own, why not work with a managed service provider like Point North Networks? We can take the stress out of managing your network security. To get started, call us at 651-234-0895.
Tip of the Week: 3 Things You Can Do to Keep Your Business’ IT More Secure
With many businesses’ increased reliance on their information systems and other IT, they need to do everything they can to keep those systems up and running and secure. This not only includes rolling out security systems that support that goal, it also demands they take the action necessary to keep these systems secure. Let’s look at four things you need to do to keep your business’ IT as secure as possible.
Promote Strong Password Practices
Many users are just not as savvy as most organizations need them to be about their passwords. In fact, many of the most popular passwords used today are still “password” and “123456”. Even if your people are more deliberate about their password practices, many of them choose passwords that could be easily guessed if someone had knowledge about that person’s personal life. This can be a major detriment to any organization’s attempts to keep their IT secure. Here are some tips that you can use to create strong and reliable passwords:
Password Length
It stands to reason that longer passwords are harder to guess than shorter ones. It’s been proven that passwords that are at least 12 characters long are more apt to be secure than not. The problem with longer passwords is that they are more easily forgotten and result in significant downtime. A good strategy is to create easy-to-remember passphrases with random words and a combination of upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols. For example a password of “elephantredfootball” will usually be secure, but one that is written: “3l3ph@ntr3df00tb@ll” is even more secure.
Unique Passwords
Lots of people will use the same password for every account. This couldn’t be more dangerous. Think about it, if you use the same password everywhere and one account is cracked, you are looking at a situation where every account where you use that password is now compromised.
Use Software Tools
There are plenty of tools designed to help people keep their accounts safe. Password managers can be a good resource for people who use long or randomly-generated passwords. These platforms use encryption to ensure that all login and passwords are secure and can cut down on password-related problems that can cause downtime and unwanted IT support costs. Another tool that can help organizations keep their accounts secure is multi-factor authentication. Most platforms will provide options that will add an additional layer of security in the ways of an authentication code sent through an authentication app or separate email or text message. In using randomly-generated codes from a multi-factor authentication system, you can do more to ensure that the people who access your organization’s network-attached files and cloud services are authorized to do so.
Train Your Staff
One of the biggest issues for organizational IT security has to be threats coming in from outside your organization. These typically come in the form of phishing attacks. A phishing attack can come in on any platform including phone, email, text message, or even social media. There are over three billion phishing emails sent every day, and that isn’t even taking into account all the other attack vectors. These messages come in with the intention of getting an unwitting or distracted employee to engage with it. Once this happens, nothing good comes of it. Scammers will use this social engineering technique to gain access to protected accounts, deploy malware of all types, and disrupt an organization’s workflow. This is why it is imperative to train your staff on how to identify phishing attacks and what to do when they inevitably encounter one.
The phishing message will typically look like it comes from a person or organization that has some semblance of authority. Scammers like to develop subterfuges acting as financial institutions, insurance companies, even executives and managers inside a company. Many will ask recipients to click on a hyperlink or download an attachment. Either action could be dire for an organization’s technology. Let’s look at some variables of phishing messages that ever organization needs to train their employees on:
Demand Immediate Action
Most phishing attacks are structured to create fear and anxiety in the recipient. This typically will get people to make impulsive decisions. The best action is to verify any suspicious action before interacting with any messages like this.
Include Unprofessional Spelling Errors and Grammatical Faux Pas
Many phishing messages are developed by people whose first language isn’t the recipient’s language and include demands, spelling errors, and grammatical errors that no professional correspondence would include.
Come From Unrecognizable Accounts
Many phishing messages may initially look legitimate when you look at the account it comes from. The more legitimate these messages seem the more effective they are. Consider the email address or account these messages come from before clicking on any links or downloading anything from the email.
Keep Your Software Updated
Phishing may get most of the attention, but one of the most used attack vectors by hackers is infiltrating networks through software vulnerabilities. Most enterprise software is continuously being developed to ensure that it is a secure product. If an organization doesn’t have a patch management program where their applications are updated regularly, hackers can use any software vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access and wreak havoc on their network.
If your organization uses a lot of applications, it may seem like keeping everything patched is a full-time job. That’s why using automation to ensure new patches are added regularly is important. You will also want to test every patch to ensure that your software solutions function as designed. This includes frequently updating antivirus tools, firewalls, and spam filters.
There are plenty of solutions and strategies that you can use to keep your business’ network and data secure. If you would like to have a conversation about cybersecurity and how to deploy some tools and strategies that can work to that end, give Point North Networks, Inc., a call today at 651-234-0895.
Tighten Up Your Network Security with Superior Access Control
How often do you find yourself stressing out about who has access to which data or internal resources on your company network? What about who has access to open the front door of your office or who has access to important physical resources within your building? Ensuring the security of your business’ assets is critical, and access control tools can help your company ensure that only authorized individuals have access to specific parts of your organization’s infrastructure, be it physical or digital.
What is Access Control?
Access control is, at its core, a way to restrict access to specific resources within your virtual private networks based on user or role. It generally involves the authorization of some sort and demands that the user verify their identity before being granted access to said resources. Think about it like asking the wireless network for permission before being allowed onto it; once the wireless network or infrastructure has confirmed the identity of the individual, they will have access to the resources.
Access control can be broken up into two groups: digital or cyber access control and physical access control. We’ll go over some of the benefits of both types of access control and how they can help your business keep itself safe.
Cyber Access Control
Your business undoubtedly has data on its infrastructure that should only be accessed by specific individuals and no one else. This might include sensitive employee data, applications or resources, financial records, and so on.
You should be limiting access to important information like this specifically because the fewer people who have access to it, the less likely it will be compromised. Through access control tools, you can control which employees have access to specific data, applications, or resources on your network, based on their role within your organization.
Physical Access Control
Sometimes you want to keep certain users out of specific parts of your office. This is where physical access control comes into play. Physical access control might involve key cards, code-guarded doors, and even biometric scanners, with the intention of securing various parts of your office.
One example of how you might use it is if you have sensitive records stored in a specific part of your office. You might keep that door locked, only accessible to specific individuals within your organization. Another example might be an access gate open only to employees of your business.
Tips to Maximizing Network Security
All businesses, irrespective of their size, can become targets of hacking and other cyber attacks. Automated attacks, botnets, etc are simply looking at the loopholes in network security (both wireless networks and your entire network) to exploit and complete their advances. This is why it is important to tighten your network security system to the maximum potential and using Superior Access Control is a great way of doing so.
The Cambridge College of Healthcare and Technology defines the importance of network security like this, “Network security is important for a number of reasons. For example, network security helps organizations prevent costly data breaches that can result in millions of lost revenue. In fact, the average cost of a serious data breach is $4.24 million, according to a report by IBM.”
It adds, “Network security also helps prevent the dangerous sharing of consumer data such as social security numbers, private health information and financial information. Cybercriminals can use this information to assume someone else’s identity which has many negative consequences.”
Such cyber threats are not limited to just small businesses, even the biggest conglomerates have fallen prey to data breaches. Companies like Yahoo, Alibaba, LinkedIn, Facebook, Marriot International Hotels, MySpace, Adobe, etc have faced data breaches that amounted to the loss of data of millions of users.
Here are some steps that your security team can follow to mitigate security risks:
Get a firewall
The first step to increase your cybersecurity is by getting a firewall. Hackers usually look for network system vulnerabilities by scanning open ports. These ports are a source through which your business network connects with the wider world of the web. Hackers attack such ports to gain access and control over your systems. A firewall locks down these ports and make them more secure.
Firewalls are the first line of defence that identifies which ports should be open and which ones should remain guarded.
These firewalls can be installed on mobile devices as well as desktop computers to ensure that every device is safe. However, having a firewall at the primary entry to your company network system is necessary despite all your devices having individual firewalls. This will ensure the utmost security of your network, data and other information.
Make your firewall password protected
Cybersecurity is such an important issue in today’s digital world that simply having a firewall is not enough. You must password-secure it to enhance security and allow only authorized users to reach it. Never retain your default firewall password as it is quite easy for hackers to identify them.
They can identify the brand and model name of a network device and guess a password. Alternatively, they can Google and obtain the user manual to find out the default username and password. Setting a password is the most basic step towards better cybersecurity.
Keep your router firmware updated
Outdated router or firewall firmware is yet another common cybersecurity facet that you must secure. Typically, small business networks should be updated for bug fixes and security. Your default router or firewall might become outdated within a year, increasing the risks. So, it is important to keep them updated for enhanced security.
Most routers come with a dialogue box that alerts you if the system is going to get outdated. You can check for new firmware versions from the administration menu. If these auto-update alerts are not available, you can find the version number from the router admin screen and contact your vendor site to provide you with the latest version.
Create strong passwords
Creating strong passwords is the most important and easiest way to secure your network and enhance cybersecurity. The more complex and strong your passwords, the more challenging it will be for the hackers to crack them.
For your passwords to be stronger, they must be longer and more complex. Using password best practices like including at least 8 characters with a combination of numbers, uppercase and lowercase letters, and computer symbols. Never use the same password twice.
Keep your apps, browsers and OS updated
Installing new updates on your operating system is one of the top cybersecurity best practices. Most such software updates add better security fixes, making it more difficult for hackers to access and exploit your information and data. The same is true for your apps.
Browser updates are also important as every new update makes your browser more secure in cybersecurity. Review your browser security settings regularly apart from installing all new updates.
Use two-way authentication and encryption
More always merrier when it comes to cybersecurity. While passwords act as the first line of defense for your network, numerical codes that are sent to your mobile device or email address should also be added as a second line of defence.
Encryption is another form of cybersecurity best practices. Encryptions protect cyber criminals from gaining access to documents and files even if they manage to break through your security network. You can encrypt Windows and Mac address, flash drives, etc for enhanced cybersecurity and better secure your network.
Block pings and pop-ups
Most routers and firewalls come with several settings that let you determine the kind of visibility your router and firewall will be to the world outside. Ping requests and pop-ups are the most common way hackers attack you. If a network responds to such requests, then it becomes easy for hackers to enter the network. You can use a virtual private network to do so.
You can set your security settings in such a way that your router or network doesn’t respond to ping requests. You can do this through the administration menu.
Frequently asked questions about tightening Network Security with Superior Access Control
Why network security is important for mitigating cybersecurity risks?
Cyber threats are quite commonplace in today’s digital world. As more businesses operate online, their data is always under threat and hackers are finding newer ways to hack networks and routers to gain access to sensitive data. To protect your network from hackers, you must tighten cybersecurity to the maximum through superior access control.
What are some of the most common ways to tighten your network security?
Enhancing your wireless network security can be done by following cybersecurity best practices like installing a network firewall, protecting your mobile devices, desktop computers or any other device, having strong passwords and not using the same password, enabling automatic updates, never clicking on suspicious emails, encryption and blocking pings, two-factor authentication, etc.
What are the benefits of network security?
Having robust network security will keep your sensitive data safe, protect unauthorized users from entering your network, build trust in your customers, mitigate risks, protect important information, and help create a more modern workplace.
Get Started Today
Point North networks, Inc., knows how complex it can be to implement new security solutions, especially if they require a certain level of management and maintenance like access control systems do. We want to help your company take advantage of these solutions in a way that minimizes the additional duties and responsibilities of your organization.
Through Point North, you can implement, manage, and maintain these systems without dedicating your internal resources to them; instead, you can outsource the responsibility to us! Our technicians are more than happy to assist you each step of the way.
To learn more, reach out to us at 651-234-0895.
How to Get Cybersecurity Through to Your Staff
Getting your staff to care about your organizational network and data security may be more difficult than you might think, but it’s not a lost cause. Today, keeping your business’ organizational security strong relies heavily on your staff’s willingness to follow the right practices, so today we thought we’d give you seven tips to get your people to care about security
Be Up Front
One of the main reasons employees don’t often care about cybersecurity is the overt secrecy surrounding it. Today’s organization needs to come clean when it comes to the constant threats that are out there. If you want your people to have a vested interest in keeping your business’ information systems and data secure, you need to level with them. After all, they can’t help if they don’t understand.
Make it a Personal Investment
Your company holds a lot of your employees personal data. Let them know that along with any sensitive and proprietary data that could be lost in a data breach, that their data could also be vulnerable. In order to sufficiently secure your data and theirs, they need to know what’s at stake if they don’t actively follow cybersecurity procedures.
Top Down Security
Every member of your organization needs to understand that they could be targeted by hackers and fall victim to these threats. The more your employees understand that management is actively complying with security policies, the more willing they will be to alter the way they consider cybersecurity.
Gamify Your Process
People tend to be more engaged when there is incentive baked into a policy. Gamification is the strategy of scoring a person based on their efforts. This strategy works wonders for productivity so it stands to reason that it would work for cybersecurity awareness and following any organizational policy that’s in place to keep your systems and data secure.
Standardize Procedure
One of the most important variables to get your people to follow the rules, is to have them in place to begin with. In cybersecurity, confusion can be a huge albatross, so ensuring that everyone is playing with the same rulebook is a must. This includes building procedures to handle attacks such as phishing as well as password hygiene and many other security-based policies. The more consistent your procedures are, the more likely your staff is to understand and follow them.
Start from Day One
With all the threats that are out there at the moment, you will want to stress the importance of cybersecurity with current and new employees, alike. If you start hammering home the importance of compliance with security procedures from the day an employee starts at your business, the more likely they will continue to comply with them as they undertake their job; which for most of your staff, isn’t strictly cybersecurity.
Keep Training
Employee’s Security training is becoming commonplace at almost every organization, largely because the threats that it faces could have devastating consequences. You will want to invest in comprehensive training and re-training to ensure that your employees understand the importance of your cybersecurity initiatives, and that they are up-to-date on any and all changes to policy or strategy.
Cybersecurity is a team effort today and if your organization isn’t stressing the importance of it, it’s only a matter of time until it rears its head. If you would like to learn more about training your employees on the best practices of cybersecurity, creating a cybersecurity policy that works to keep your information systems secure, or if you would just like to talk to one of our IT professionals about cybersecurity best practices and procedures, give us a call today at 651-234-0895.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does cybersecurity awareness help employees within an organization?
With the increasing threats across the globe, it is becoming extremely important for the employees of every organization to be thorough in their knowledge of cyber security. A simple training session can enable the employees to know and beware about the –
- Device loss or theft
- Social engineering tactics
- Phishing attacks
- Malware and ransomware attacks
- Zero-day exploits
- Macro and script attacks
- Botnet attacks
When the employees are aware of the severity and consequences of these attacks, they are more likely to stay on top of OS Patches and antivirus updates, unlike earlier when they would almost always neglect them. They are also more likely to ensure that they accept all critical upgrades for their devices.
How can employees keep their devices safe from Cybersecurity Attacks?
In order for employees to stay safe from cyber-attacks, they must –
- Understand and respect the difference between personal and corporate usage of devices
- Have a work account that is well-monitored
- Agree to have restricted installations and web filters on their work device
- Be aware of the possibilities of data loss and theft
- Ensure that they follow all security patches and OS updates.
What are some of the easiest ways to spot suspicious activities related to cybersecurity threats?
Employees can easily gauge a threat of cyber security attack by noticing one or more of the following –
- Unexplained appearance of new apps or programs on their devices
- Unknown pop-ups during startup
- Numerous pop-ups while working on day-to-day tasks
- Slowed down the functioning of the device
- Unknown extensions in the browser
- Unexplained tabs in the browser
- Loss of control of the mouse or keyboard
Does the US Government Provide Any Courses on Cybersecurity Awareness?
While they don’t host any program themselves, the National Institute of Standards and Technology does offer a list of free and low-cost online training content. These courses include webinars, quizzes, and certifications, and are specifically designed for employees.
Remote Collaboration Demands Additional Security
Workforces have been increasingly distributed and many businesses aim to continue that strategy for the foreseeable future. There are a fair share of challenges that distributed employees have themselves, but for the business, it can be tough getting them to do the things that need to be done to secure the business. Here are a few actions that need to be taken if you want to make that happen.
What Changes When People Work Remotely?
One of the things that workers don’t understand is what exactly changes when they work from home is that it effectively distributes the operational network over a wide array of networks, making it difficult for security teams to provide the comprehensive services that they typically do. This requires the employee him/herself to do most of the diligent work to ensure that their endpoints don’t become problematic for their business. This gets more difficult as the number of new endpoints and those who are new to working remotely increase.
For many businesses, the procedures that dictate a work-from-home policy have been hashed out at some point over the past two years, but it is important to not be complacent when onboarding new workers or dealing with current staff that all have increasing numbers of endpoints in their home.
Do you supply the devices that your employees are working on?
Have you migrated your production to Software-as-a-Service applications?
Do you use any other cloud-hosted environments to make it easier for remote employees to access information?
If not, do you have secure access for remote employees through a VPN or some other remote access service?
Staying up to date and present on these issues will help you do more to protect your network and infrastructure from any threats that could be brought in by unwitting employees.
The Threat of Personal Devices
For many organizations, the thought of purchasing endpoints for every employee now working from home is an impossible ask. Even if it is possible, is it a prudent way to spend capital? Some would argue yes since one of the biggest cybersecurity risks to your company is a personal device that isn’t secured against today’s various threats. This isn’t because your security platforms can’t secure your network, it is because the user may not have up-to-date antivirus software, or their applications aren’t updated properly, or they don’t use password practices that help ward against outside infiltration.
Since the threat of a data breach increases substantially when there are open vulnerabilities, it is prudent to expand your security protocols to ensure that all company-owned information is being saved to company-owned storage solutions; whether that be an onsite server or company-owned cloud platforms. The less company data is found on employees personal devices, the better the chances of protecting it.
Collaboration Challenges
It was so when everyone was working side-by-side, but employees depend on collaboration apps even more today to get projects out the door and keep lines of communication open. Unfortunately, these tools were never designed with security in mind—they are designed with cooperative productivity in mind—so it opens up new problems for people working in these apps if their data isn’t secure in transit; and when it arrives on your employees’ computers.
One solid tip is to ensure that the people that are collaborating on a project or service are the only ones inside a specific group. Since anyone can initiate conversations, it is important that only the people that need to be in on the conversation, data flow, and administration of any project be in the chat. Otherwise, exposing potentially sensitive information to insecure parties is possible. This happens more than you think, especially in enterprise and medium-sized business settings where people are added and removed to mailing lists and collaboration lists all the time.
Finally, you will need to train your people. In the collaboration age, where doing more with less is a business model, you need to ensure that you invest resources in getting the people that work for you the information they need to keep your business’ IT and data secure. They don’t necessarily need to be experts in computer maintenance to do this either. Just teach them the basics—how to spot phishing and other potentially harmful messages and report them to the IT administrator; how to put together a secure password; why your business has the password and security policies it does; what resources are managed by your IT team; and what they need to do to ensure that they aren’t a weak link in your business’ cybersecurity efforts.
A lot of people like the experience of working from home, and for the business (with today’s technology) it can be of great benefit, but in order for it to be a good experience, strategies have to be altered to ensure that you aren’t constantly battling your team and scammers alike. If you would like some advice about how to navigate a remote team, the technology needed to ensure you’re ready and any other IT or workflow related questions, give Point North Networks, Inc., a call today at 651-234-0895.
