The frequency of ransomware attacks shows no signs of relenting in 2023. If anything, ransomware attack techniques are evolving and becoming increasingly elusive. This evolution renders common endpoint solutions inadequate to counteract these attacks.
How do you define a strong security posture?
It is not unusual for most digitally modernised organisations to have thousands of assets across the various lines of business, resulting in multiple attack vectors that adversaries can use to gain access. Having a strong security posture means having a heightened sense of cybersecurity readiness against insider and outsider threats.
An organisation’s security posture can be measured by:
- Level of visibility of assets inventory including data, applications, systems and infrastructure
- Controls and processes that protect your organisation against cyberattacks
- Capabilities in detecting and containing cyberattacks, as well as reaction and recovery from such events.
- Security automation
Understanding the bad actors
If you know your enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles – Sun Tzu
Unlike other aspects of IT, cybersecurity requires executives to continuously outsmart malicious individuals who aim to exploit infrastructure vulnerabilities, and not just overcome algorithms. One way to tackle this is for IT security leaders to ‘think like a hacker’ to thwart the sophisticated manoeuvres of malicious actors.
It is important to ask yourself certain questions to adopt a “hacker’s mindset”:
- What motivates the hacker?
- What does the hacker aim to achieve through the attack?
- Is the hacker being opportunistic, or are they targeting your systems specifically?
- How is the hacker planning to attack your systems?
- When is the hacker likely to attack?
Providing precise answers to these questions will help establish a solid strategic response foundation against hackers.
Hackers alter the playbook with newer ransomware
Recent incidents show that the education, healthcare, and services sectors are most vulnerable to ransomware attacks. Moreover, emerging ransomware like CL0P and MalasLocker are seemingly redefining the typical ransomware playbook. The use of zero-day exploits in ransomware attacks is also escalating rapidly.
CL0P impacts Microsoft Windows and Linux Users by encrypting and exfiltrating files. The hackers then demand a ransom to facilitate file decryption and to prevent the exposure of stolen files. The threat level posed by CL0P is considered to be exceedingly high. Conversely, MalasLocker asks for a donation to a charity they approve of in exchange for a decryption tool and assurance against data leakage. When you think like a hacker, you have a better chance of stopping these types of threats in their tracks.
Managed Endpoint Detection and Response
Managed endpoint detection and response helps you prevent compromised endpoints from providing hackers with an opening to obtain unrestricted access to your infrastructure. You can defuse, disarm, and remediate cyberthreats like ransomware and other advanced persistent issues in real time to stop loss of data and damage to brand image.
Advanced artificial intelligence engines can identify suspicious application behaviour or hacker incursions and remediate them by restoring endpoints. A managed services provider can deploy advanced threat intelligence feeds and provide a 24/7 security operations centre to create proactive security policy rules for automated threat detection and remediation. This way, you can minimise dwell time and quickly restore impacted endpoints.
SASE and ZTNA become key to the hybrid era
Extortionate ransomware attacks can infiltrate the corporate data centre from employee devices through the VPN, underscoring the shift towards a hybrid work model that places identity at the centre of your security strategy. By making identity the new security perimeter, you can control access to sensitive data and applications much more effectively.
To fortify your ransomware prevention capabilities, you can deploy SASE to deliver network and security as a service, in addition to unifying disparate security policies while moving security functions closer to PoP or edge locations. A key building block of SASE, ZTNA (Zero Trust Network Access) is a policy framework that trusts no one unless they are authenticated and frequently revalidated.
ZTNA gained momentum because of hybrid work and the multiplicity of locations and devices from which people access the organisational network. It delivers policy compliance and ransomware protection at the edge. ZTNA verifies users’ access on a zero-trust basis that considers location, time of day, and device among other variables.
Secure Cloud Infrastructure and Data
With 80% of organisations reporting at least one cloud security incident in the past year, testing and improving your cloud infrastructure security posture is crucial. Hackers exploit vulnerabilities in cloud infrastructure using cloud ransomware to gain unauthorised access to data. Once the ransomware enters your system, it encrypts files and folders, leaving you with limited recovery options.
If the ransom is not paid, hackers may threaten to expose or sell sensitive data, forcing you to acquiesce to their demands. It is essential to thoroughly scan your cloud infrastructure to identify potential vulnerabilities and risks. Engaging external expertise is often inevitable to interpret the results and provide recommendations for bolstering your cloud infrastructure security posture.
Security-aware employees are the best firewall
Sophisticated phishing attacks are the most popular vectors for ransomware because they are inherently harder to detect, and sometimes even cautious users fall victim. After all, humans are often considered the weakest link in an organisation’s cybersecurity defence.
A robust Cybersecurity Awareness Training programme is essential to educate your organisation’s users on making informed decisions regarding the content they receive via email and interactions on social media. Well-trained employees form a human firewall, serving as the first line of defence against increasingly complex phishing and ransomware attacks. It’s advisable for organisations to regularly test their employees’ awareness, trigger action plans as needed, and establish measurement mechanisms to gauge effectiveness. Get in touch to discuss about the cybersecurity awareness training needs at your organisation today.