Interested in the newest emerging cybersecurity technologies? These are the ones you should definitely keep an eye on!
It would be hard for organizations to manage their daily activities in today’s digital world without relying on computerized systems. However, this comes with a disadvantage, as many companies worry about cybersecurity threats. And this is only normal, considering that the number of cyberattacks raised by 50% per week from 2020 to 2021. As hackers become more skilled at their job, experts must create innovative cybersecurity tools and practices.
According to Data Breach Claims experts, data breaches affect millions of people, leading to devastating psychological and financial consequences. Cybercrime keeps running rampant, posing significant concerns for everyone who may become the next victim of malicious actors.
Cybersecurity Today
Nowadays, cybersecurity is a critical part of everyone’s life. Since everything is connected online, it’s necessary to ensure your data remains safe. Sadly, stories of data breaches are common among credit card companies, phone companies, banks, online retailers, and more.
Luckily, everyone has realized the need for solid cybersecurity practices, and they are moving in the right direction. Top companies like Google, Microsoft and Apple are constantly updating their software, and governments are also willing to invest in cybersecurity to protect classified data.
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What are the most common cyberattacks?
Many different cyberattacks pose risks for an organization, but here we’ll look at the most common ones.
Malware
Malware is a broad term in cyberattacks, a malicious type of software that harms a computer system. When it enters a computer, it can steal, delete, encrypt data, monitor the activity of the computer’s user, and hijack core computing functions. Common malware includes viruses, worms, spyware, and Trojan horses.
Ransomware
Ransomware is a malicious activity where hackers lock the victim’s files or computer and hold their information for ransom. Victims need to pay for the system and files to be unlocked. This cyberattack occurs when you visit an infected website or through a phishing email and is devastating because of the difficulty of recovering the damaged data. Some victims choose to pay the ransom, and yet this doesn’t offer a guarantee that the hacker will gain control over the files.
Social Engineering
This is a significant security risk in today’s world because it relies on social interaction. And since humans can easily make errors, social engineering attacks happen frequently. More precisely, around 93% of data breaches in companies occur due to employees engaging in this type of attack.
Phishing
Phishing is one of the most malevolent cyberattacks, which happens when hackers use a fake identity to trick people into providing sensitive information or visiting a website containing malware. Phishing attacks generally occur through email, when cybercriminals make the email look like it comes from the government or your local bank. Another tactic they use is to create a false social media account and pretend to be a family member or a friend. The purpose is to ask for data or money.
Today’s Emerging Cybersecurity Technologies
In what follows, we discuss the most prevalent emerging cybersecurity technologies and their applications. Organizations can use these tools to protect themselves against cyber threats and enhance security.
Behavioral Analytics
Behavioral analytics uses data to understand how individuals behave on mobile apps, websites, networks, and systems. This technology helps cybersecurity professionals find potential vulnerabilities and threats. More specifically, it analyses patterns of behavior to identify unusual actions and events that may point to a cybersecurity threat.
For instance, behavioral analytics can detect unusually significant amounts of data from a device, meaning that a cyberattack is either looming or happening at that time. Behavioral analytics benefits organizations because it allows them to automate detection and response. With this innovative tool, they can detect potential attacks early and also predict future ones.
Cloud Encryption
Cloud services boost efficiency, save money, and help companies provide enhanced remote services. But storing data in the cloud leads to vulnerabilities, which are solved through cloud encryption technology. This innovative solution turns understandable data into unreadable code before it gets stored.
Experts believe that cloud encryption is an effective cybersecurity technology for securing private information, as it prevents unauthorized users from accessing usable data. Additionally, this technology also increases customers’ trust regarding cloud services and, at the same time, makes it easier for organizations to comply with government regulations.
Defensive Artificial Intelligence (AI)
AI is a powerful tool which helps cybersecurity professionals detect and prevent cyberattacks. Adversarial machine learning and offensive AI are technologies that savvy cybercriminals use in their malicious activities because traditional cybersecurity tools can’t detect them easily.
Offensive AI is a technology that involves deep fakes, which can be false personas, videos, and images. They depict people that don’t even exist and things that never really occurred. Cybersecurity professionals can combat offensive AI with defensive AI, as this technology strengthens algorithms, making them challenging to break.
Zero Trust Emerging Cybersecurity Technologies
In traditional network security, the motto was to trust but verify. This came from the assumption that users within a company’s network perimeter didn’t have malicious intentions. However, Zero Trust relies on the opposite idea, namely, that you should always verify and never trust. Zero Trust is an innovative network security approach, requiring users to authenticate themselves to access the company’s applications and data.
Zero Trust doesn’t embrace the idea that users within a network are trustworthy, which results in enhanced information security for companies. Zero Trust helps cybersecurity professionals ensure safety in remote working and deal efficiently with threats like ransomware. This framework may combine different tools, such as data encryption, multi-factor authentication, and endpoint security.
Manufacturer Usage Description (MUD)
The Internet Engineering Task Force has created MUD to enhance security for IoT devices, both in home networks and small businesses. Unfortunately, IoT devices are prone to network-based attacks that can stop a machine from working correctly and lead to the loss of critical data. IoT devices don’t have to be costly or highly complicated to be secure.
Using MUD is a straightforward and affordable way of boosting the security of IoT devices and can help reduce the damage that comes with a successful attack.
