Modern life is digital, and that means modern crime is too! We are constantly connected to the internet—chatting, checking emails, shopping, banking, using mobile wallets or updating our social media profile. But did you know that each time you go online, your PC, tablet or mobile phone could be putting you and your personal information at risk? In 2017, individuals as well as businesses were at the receiving end of massive malware attacks, email-borne heists, hacked devices and disrupted services. Incidents such as WannaCry and Petya’s rapidly propagated network attacks, Locky and FakeGlobe’s widespread spam run, and Bad Rabbit’s watering hole attacks against some of the Eastern European countries are still fresh in our minds, aren’t they?
“We do not expect ransomware to go away anytime soon. On the contrary, it can only be anticipated to make further rounds in 2018, even as other types of digital extortion become more prevalent,” said Nilesh Jain, country manager, India & Saarc at IT security firm, Trend Micro. Ransomware is a type of malicious software designed to block access to a computer system until a sum of money is paid. “Last year, cyberattacks continued to plague business leaders, with major breaches occurring due to known vulnerabilities. This year too, we predict the trend of known vulnerabilities being used in major attacks will continue as corporate attack surfaces expand and expose more security holes.”
The moot point is this: Increased connectivity and interaction over insecure networks are a given. The harsh reality is that malware writers are rapidly evolving their techniques to exploit unsuspecting users – businesses as well as individuals—to gain access to their information. According to Jain, patch management and employee education should be prioritised for all executives to protect an enterprise’s most critical data.
Trend Micro has looked into the current and emerging threats, as well as the security approaches tailored for the landscape. As IT and operational technology (IT/OT) continue to converge, enterprise applications and platforms will be at risk of manipulation and vulnerabilities, as stated in Trend Micro’s 2018 predictions report. Additionally, the IT security firm predicts an increase in Internet of Things vulnerabilities as more devices are manufactured without security regulations or industry standards. Overall, the increased connectivity and enlarged attack surface present new opportunities for cybercriminals to leverage known issues to penetrate a corporate network.
Gaining ground
Ransomware will continue to be a major danger due to its proven success. There will be an increase in targeted ransomware attacks, in which the criminals go after a single enterprise to disrupt operations and force a larger ransom payout. “We foresee that the ransomware business model will still be a cybercrime mainstay in 2018, while other forms of digital extortion will gain more ground,” said Jain. “The ransomware attacks will manifest itself in a more specialised and targeted manner, unlike the earlier approach. With respect to India, in 2018 we will experience more number of attacks targeted at the ATMs, especially malware attacks. We also expect to see a rise in security incidents across public cloud platforms.”
If the evolution of cybercriminal tactics over the years is any indication, cybercriminals are now going straight for the money instead of tricking users into giving up their credentials. The early online threats were heavy on infostealers and malware that hijacked banking transactions to steal private information. The current success of ransomware campaigns—especially their extortion element—will prompt cybercriminals looking to make big profits out of targeting populations that will yield the most return possible. Attackers will continue to rely on phishing campaigns where emails with ransomware payload are delivered en masse to ensure a percentage of affected users. They will also go for the bigger buck by targeting a single company, possibly in an Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) environment, for a ransomware attack that will disrupt the operations and affect the production line. We already saw this during the WannaCry and Petya outbreaks, and it won’t be long before it becomes the intended impact of the threat.
Businesses on the radar
Enterprise systems will not be the only ones targeted; in 2018, Trend Micro expects to continue to see security flaws in Adobe and Microsoft platforms. Additionally, Business Email Compromise (BEC) attacks will also continue to gain popularity with attackers, as the return on investment for successful attacks is quite high. BEC is a type of scam targeting companies who conduct wire transfers and have suppliers abroad. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), BEC scams have been reported in over a 100 countries and had a marked increase of 2,370% in identified exposed losses between January 2015 and December 2016. As per the Trend Micro report, this isn’t surprising since BEC scams are to cybercriminals what burglary is to “offline” criminals.
BEC scams are quick, require very little scouting, and can yield big gains depending on the target, as evidenced by the $5 billion recorded losses. Trend Micro predicts that BEC incidents will multiply in 2018, leading to more than $9 billion in global losses.
Last, but not the least, Trend Micro expects cases of biohacking, via wearables and medical devices, to materialise in 2018. Biometric activity trackers such as heart rate monitors and fitness bands can be intercepted to gather information about the users. Even life-sustaining pacemakers have been found embedded with vulnerabilities that can be exploited for potentially fatal attacks.