"Your Information Technology Leader"

InTegriLogic Blog

InTegriLogic Blog

InTegriLogic has been serving the Tucson area since 1999, providing IT Support such as technical helpdesk support, computer support, and consulting to small and medium-sized businesses.

Navigating Backups and Training During Unprecedented Times

The surge in cybercrimes against businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic proved how flexible cyber players are.  Remember that it could happen to any organization, including yours, if you do not arm your business with robust backup and regular security awareness training.

It’s alarming that phishing shot up by 67% since the start of the pandemic. Initially, when this turn of events stunned the world and businesses struggled to adapt to the new normal, hackers pretending to be the World Health Organization (WHO) duped people into clicking on malicious links or sharing sensitive information. Such evil tricks, if not tackled, can easily violate your business network and lead to a terrible disaster, compromising invaluable data.

For instance, in November 2020, the Internal Revenue Services (IRS) issued a warning regarding an SMS-based phishing scam through which hackers cheated citizens in the name of a 'Covid-19 TREAS FUND'. When someone clicked on the link , they were redirected to a website identical to www.irs.gov which collected their data. This scam is just the tip of an iceberg of phishing scams that unfurled in 2020. What if one of your employees fell prey to such a scam? A careless mistake like that could result in a successful cyber attack on your business that can have severe repercussions. Data loss, downtime, hefty penalties, lawsuits or even permanent closure.

The sudden appearance of COVID-19 caused a sense of panic among businesses. With the virus spreading like wildfire, the work-from-home model was the only available option to maintain a safe working environment. However, the unprecedented scale of remote work has endangered the security of several businesses, including yours. If you do not fix the gap between the preparedness and efficacy of your backup and security defenses, data loss could just be the first of many problems you could face.

Why Backups and Security Awareness Training Matter?

Backups can be a lifesaver for your business by protecting your valuable data from being deleted or altered by cybercriminals. Although the pandemic acted as a catalyst for backup adoption, only 41% of businesses back up their data at least once a day. That is not a very healthy practice and you must make sure proper policy development, regular testing and continual reviews fuel your backup strategy.

Other than protecting your sensitive data, backups can help reduce severe downtime. They also improve your business’ reputation and act as a single access point for your entire database.

Even if you have all your backups in order, a negligent employee can still be a threat to your business data. In 2020, the San Jose Federal Court convicted an employee from a global MNC for carelessly deleting business-sensitive data. Thus, the only way to tackle the factor of human error is through regular security awareness training.

Always bear in mind that backups and security awareness training are equally important when it comes to your business successfully warding off cyberattacks that can result in downtime, data loss and more. Selecting one over the other can dilute your business’ counter-threat strategy. By implementing a robust backup and regular security awareness training, your business can deal with harsh times as well as cyberthreats that exploit such difficult periods.

Empower Your Business Now

If there’s one lesson the pandemic has taught businesses, it’s that it’s better to be safe than sorry. The business world is at a critical juncture and your proactive approach can make or break your business’ future. While a world without cybercriminals would be great, such a utopian world unfortunately does not exist. The only way forward is through the implementation of strategies to protect your business data, processes, systems and people. And for that, you must empower your business by integrating backups and comprehensive security awareness training.

Remember, you don’t have to take the first step to a safer tomorrow alone. The right partner by your side can make your journey easier and more successful. It all begins with a simple email to us. Get in touch today!

 
Article curated and used by permission.
  
Data Sources:
  • Security Magazine Verizon Data Breach Digest
  • Security Magazine
  • Help Net Security Magazine
  • Bloomberglaw.com
Continue reading

Navigating Backups and Training During Unprecedented Times

The surge in cybercrimes against businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic proved how flexible cyber players are.  Remember that it could happen to any organization, including yours, if you do not arm your business with robust backup and regular security awareness training.

It’s alarming that phishing shot up by 67% since the start of the pandemic. Initially, when this turn of events stunned the world and businesses struggled to adapt to the new normal, hackers pretending to be the World Health Organization (WHO) duped people into clicking on malicious links or sharing sensitive information. Such evil tricks, if not tackled, can easily violate your business network and lead to a terrible disaster, compromising invaluable data.

For instance, in November 2020, the Internal Revenue Services (IRS) issued a warning regarding an SMS-based phishing scam through which hackers cheated citizens in the name of a 'Covid-19 TREAS FUND'. When someone clicked on the link , they were redirected to a website identical to www.irs.gov which collected their data. This scam is just the tip of an iceberg of phishing scams that unfurled in 2020. What if one of your employees fell prey to such a scam? A careless mistake like that could result in a successful cyber attack on your business that can have severe repercussions. Data loss, downtime, hefty penalties, lawsuits or even permanent closure.

The sudden appearance of COVID-19 caused a sense of panic among businesses. With the virus spreading like wildfire, the work-from-home model was the only available option to maintain a safe working environment. However, the unprecedented scale of remote work has endangered the security of several businesses, including yours. If you do not fix the gap between the preparedness and efficacy of your backup and security defenses, data loss could just be the first of many problems you could face.

Why Backups and Security Awareness Training Matter?

Backups can be a lifesaver for your business by protecting your valuable data from being deleted or altered by cybercriminals. Although the pandemic acted as a catalyst for backup adoption, only 41% of businesses back up their data at least once a day. That is not a very healthy practice and you must make sure proper policy development, regular testing and continual reviews fuel your backup strategy.

Other than protecting your sensitive data, backups can help reduce severe downtime. They also improve your business’ reputation and act as a single access point for your entire database.

Even if you have all your backups in order, a negligent employee can still be a threat to your business data. In 2020, the San Jose Federal Court convicted an employee from a global MNC for carelessly deleting business-sensitive data. Thus, the only way to tackle the factor of human error is through regular security awareness training.

Always bear in mind that backups and security awareness training are equally important when it comes to your business successfully warding off cyberattacks that can result in downtime, data loss and more. Selecting one over the other can dilute your business’ counter-threat strategy. By implementing a robust backup and regular security awareness training, your business can deal with harsh times as well as cyberthreats that exploit such difficult periods.

Empower Your Business Now

If there’s one lesson the pandemic has taught businesses, it’s that it’s better to be safe than sorry. The business world is at a critical juncture and your proactive approach can make or break your business’ future. While a world without cybercriminals would be great, such a utopian world unfortunately does not exist. The only way forward is through the implementation of strategies to protect your business data, processes, systems and people. And for that, you must empower your business by integrating backups and comprehensive security awareness training.

Remember, you don’t have to take the first step to a safer tomorrow alone. The right partner by your side can make your journey easier and more successful. It all begins with a simple email to us. Get in touch today!

  Article curated and used by permission.    Data Sources:
  • Security Magazine Verizon Data Breach Digest
  • Security Magazine
  • Help Net Security Magazine
  • Bloomberglaw.com
Continue reading

THE WEEK IN BREACH NEWS: 05/05/21 – 05/11/21

Major breaches at two medical service providers are sending shockwaves throughout the industry. A new email security report from Graphus shows massive cybercrime increases. Plus, government entities around the world have another bad week and a look at how to protect your clients from ransomware attacks targeting infrastructure like this week’s Colonial Pipeline disaster including who should be beefing up security to stay safe from cybercrime.

United States – MedNetwoRX

https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/reported-ransomware-attack-leads-weeks-aprima-ehr-outages
Exploit: Ransomware

MedNetwoRX: Medical Information Processing


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.607= Severe
A reported ransomware attack on MedNetwoRX has impeded medical providers’ access to their Aprima electronic health record systems for more than two weeks. This hack impacts medical practices, clinics and hospitals of all sizes, from solo providers to conglomerates that rely on MedNetworx to host the Aprima electronic medical records system from vendor CompuGroup eMDs. MedNetworx says that on April 22, it experienced a network outage that resulted in a temporary disruption to its servers and other IT systems. Two major clients, Arthritis & Osteoporosis Center of Kentucky, the Alpine Center for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, have been identified as victims as well as many small single and partner practices. The incident is under investigation and some functionality has been restored.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was confirmed as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How It Could Affect Your  Business: This is the kind of third-party service provider incident that reverberates for months as rolling damage becomes apparent. With no clear word on what if any data was stolen, your clients could be waiting for a nasty surprise.


United States – City of Tulsa

https://therecord.media/city-of-tulsa-hit-by-ransomware-over-the-weekend/
Exploit: Ransomware

City of Tulsa: Municipality


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.722= Severe
The city of Tulsa, Oklahoma, has been hit by a ransomware attack that affected the city government’s network and brought down official websites. The attack, which took place on the night between Friday and Saturday, is under investigation and city IT crews have begun restoring functionality and data from backups. This follows a string of ransomware attacks on other US municipalities in recent weeks. City officials were careful to note that no customer information has been compromised, but residents will see delays in-network services. While emergency response is not hampered, 311, some credit card payment systems and the city’s new online utility billing system were impacted.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was confirmed as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Ransomware has been an especially nasty foe for government entities, especially cities and towns. Cybercriminals know that these targets are likely to pay ransoms and unlikely to have strong security or security awareness training in place.


United States – Fermilab

https://www.govinfosecurity.com/us-physics-laboratory-exposed-documents-credentials-a-16536
Exploit: Credential Compromise

Fermilab: Research Laboratory


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.523 = Severe
The Fermilab physics laboratory has taken action to lock down its systems after security researchers found weaknesses exposing documents, proprietary applications, personal information, project details and credentials. Fermilab, which is part of the US Department of Energy, is a world-famous particle accelerator and physics laboratory in Batavia, Illinois. One database the researchers discovered allowed unauthenticated access to 5,795 documents and 53,685 file entries. One entry point led into Fermilab’s IT ticketing system, which displayed 4,500 trouble tickets. Also found was an FTP server that required no password and allowed anyone to log in anonymously. Other impacted systems exposed credentials, experiment data and other proprietary information that were stored with no security.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was confirmed as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Proprietary data needs to be stored securely. Not only does it give your competition an edge if they can see what you’re doing, but it also gives cybercriminals an edge when they’re crafting a cyberattack against your company.


United States – BlueForce Inc.

Exploit: Ransomware

https://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/news/252500356/US-defense-contractor-BlueForce-apparently-hit-by-ransomware
BlueForce: Defense Contractor


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.668 = Severe
Someone who runs training programs may need to upgrade their security awareness training. Defense contractor BlueForce has been hit by the Conti ransomware group. The gang posted data from the operation on its leak site along with supposed chat records from its negotiation with BlueForce. The Conti gang has demanded 17 bitcoin for the decryption key. BlueForce is a Virginia-based defense veteran-owned contractor that works with the US Department of Defense and the US Department of State on program management, training and development initiatives.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was confirmed as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Increased security awareness training makes organizations up to 70% less likely to experience damaging cybersecurity incidents like this one.


United States – CaptureRX

https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/capturerx-data-breach-impacts/
Exploit: Ransomware

CaptureRX: Medical Software Company


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.907 = Severe
Texas-based CaptureRx, fell victim to a ransomware attack in which cybercriminals snatched files containing the personal health information (PHI) of more than 24,000 individuals. The security breach impacted 17,655 patients of Faxton St. Luke’s Healthcare and a further 6,777 patients at Gifford Health Care as well as an indeterminate number of Thrifty Drug Store patients. CaptureRx is currently unclear how many of its healthcare provider clients have been affected by the attack. Nor has the company finished its final tally of how many individuals had their PHI exposed because of the incident.



cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.959 = Severe
Data exposed and stolen by the ransomware attackers included names, dates of birth, prescription information, and, for a limited number of patients, medical record numbers. Affected healthcare provider clients were notified of the incident by CaptureRx between March 30 and April 7.

Customers Impacted: 24K +

How it Could Affect Your Business: The medical sector has been absolutely battered by ransomware in the last 12 months. Breaches at service providers like this and Accellion show that cybercriminals are playing smart by hitting targets that offer them access to a variety of information that has value for future attacks.


United States – Alaska Court System (ACS)

https://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/551463-alaska-court-system-forced-offline-by-cyberattack
Exploit: Ransomware

Alaska Court System: Judicial Body


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.572 = Severe
The Alaska Court System (ACS) was forced to temporarily disconnect its online servers this week due to a cyberattack that installed malware on their systems, disrupting virtual court hearings. The court’s website had been taken offline and the ability to search court cases had been suspended while it worked to remove malware that had been installed on its servers. Activities that may be impacted by the ACS taking its website offline include the ability of the public to view court hearings over Zoom, online bail payments, submitting juror questionnaires and sending or receiving emails to or from an ACS email address.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was announced as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Ransomware is the weapon of choice for cybercrime especially against local, state and municipal governments with often weak or outmoded IT departments.


Australia – NSW Labor Party

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/police-investigate-cyber-attack-on-nsw-labor-party-20210505-p57p4y.html
Exploit: Ransomware

NSW Labor Party: Political Organization


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 2.109 = Severe
The ransomware group Avaddon is threatening to release a trove of sensitive information including images of passports, driver’s licenses and employment contracts from a ransomware hit on the NSW Labor Party. The cybercriminals have demanded a response to its ransom request within 240 hours and threatened to launch a denial of service attack against the party if it did not pay. NSW Police has come on board in the investigation.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was announced as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Ransomware is the modern cybercriminal’s weapon of choice. Make sure your clients are taking every possible precaution because 61% of organizations worldwide experienced a damaging ransomware incident in 2020.

 

Australia – Schepisi Communications

https://www.news.com.au/technology/online/hacking/telstra-service-provider-hit-by-cyber-attack-as-hackers-claim-sim-card-information-stolen/news-story/2ff32b2e3634506882102e9c9d012994
Exploit: Hacking

Schepisi Communications: Cloud Storage


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 2.307 = Severe
Melbourne-based Schepisi Communications has been the victim of a suspected ransomware attack. The company’s website has been offline for days after a hacker group said it infiltrated the company’s data systems and posted a disturbing ransom note on the dark web. The company is a service provider for Telstra that supplies phone numbers and cloud storage services. Among Schepisi’s other customers that appeared to have had their information exposed were global food conglomerate Nestle, a Melbourne radio station, an Australian property management firm, and a financial services company based in Victoria.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was announced as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Malware and ransomware have been the plague of increasingly beleaguered service providers.

India – WedMeGood

https://www.hackread.com/shinyhunters-leak-india-wedmegood-database/
Exploit: Hacking

WedMeGood: Wedding Planning


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.817 = Severe
Legendary cybercrime gang ShinyHunters has dumped a database belonging to WedMeGood, a popular Indian wedding planning platform. WedMeGood is yet to verify the data breach. Dark web analysts say that the database contains 41.5 GB worth of data. Lately, the hacking group has been focusing on leaking databases of Indian entities.



cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.773 = Severe
Impacted users have had PII exposed including full names, city, gender, phone numbers, email addresses, password hashes, booking leads, last login date, account creation date, Facebook unique ID numbers, vacation descriptions for Airbnb and other wedding details. Site users will want to be aware of the potential of spear-phishing attacks using this data.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Ransomware attacks have been especially prevalent against targets in India recently. Every organization in the sector should step up phishing resistance training to reduce the chance of falling prey to an attack.

Continue reading

THE WEEK IN BREACH NEWS: 05/05/21 – 05/11/21

Major breaches at two medical service providers are sending shockwaves throughout the industry. A new email security report from Graphus shows massive cybercrime increases. Plus, government entities around the world have another bad week and a look at how to protect your clients from ransomware attacks targeting infrastructure like this week’s Colonial Pipeline disaster including who should be beefing up security to stay safe from cybercrime.

United States – MedNetwoRX

https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/reported-ransomware-attack-leads-weeks-aprima-ehr-outages
Exploit: Ransomware

MedNetwoRX: Medical Information Processing


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.607= Severe
A reported ransomware attack on MedNetwoRX has impeded medical providers’ access to their Aprima electronic health record systems for more than two weeks. This hack impacts medical practices, clinics and hospitals of all sizes, from solo providers to conglomerates that rely on MedNetworx to host the Aprima electronic medical records system from vendor CompuGroup eMDs. MedNetworx says that on April 22, it experienced a network outage that resulted in a temporary disruption to its servers and other IT systems. Two major clients, Arthritis & Osteoporosis Center of Kentucky, the Alpine Center for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism, have been identified as victims as well as many small single and partner practices. The incident is under investigation and some functionality has been restored.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was confirmed as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How It Could Affect Your  Business: This is the kind of third-party service provider incident that reverberates for months as rolling damage becomes apparent. With no clear word on what if any data was stolen, your clients could be waiting for a nasty surprise.



United States – City of Tulsa

https://therecord.media/city-of-tulsa-hit-by-ransomware-over-the-weekend/
Exploit: Ransomware

City of Tulsa: Municipality


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.722= Severe
The city of Tulsa, Oklahoma, has been hit by a ransomware attack that affected the city government’s network and brought down official websites. The attack, which took place on the night between Friday and Saturday, is under investigation and city IT crews have begun restoring functionality and data from backups. This follows a string of ransomware attacks on other US municipalities in recent weeks. City officials were careful to note that no customer information has been compromised, but residents will see delays in-network services. While emergency response is not hampered, 311, some credit card payment systems and the city’s new online utility billing system were impacted.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was confirmed as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Ransomware has been an especially nasty foe for government entities, especially cities and towns. Cybercriminals know that these targets are likely to pay ransoms and unlikely to have strong security or security awareness training in place.



United States – Fermilab

https://www.govinfosecurity.com/us-physics-laboratory-exposed-documents-credentials-a-16536
Exploit: Credential Compromise

Fermilab: Research Laboratory


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.523 = Severe
The Fermilab physics laboratory has taken action to lock down its systems after security researchers found weaknesses exposing documents, proprietary applications, personal information, project details and credentials. Fermilab, which is part of the US Department of Energy, is a world-famous particle accelerator and physics laboratory in Batavia, Illinois. One database the researchers discovered allowed unauthenticated access to 5,795 documents and 53,685 file entries. One entry point led into Fermilab’s IT ticketing system, which displayed 4,500 trouble tickets. Also found was an FTP server that required no password and allowed anyone to log in anonymously. Other impacted systems exposed credentials, experiment data and other proprietary information that were stored with no security.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was confirmed as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Proprietary data needs to be stored securely. Not only does it give your competition an edge if they can see what you’re doing, but it also gives cybercriminals an edge when they’re crafting a cyberattack against your company.



United States – BlueForce Inc.

Exploit: Ransomware

https://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/news/252500356/US-defense-contractor-BlueForce-apparently-hit-by-ransomware
BlueForce: Defense Contractor


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.668 = Severe
Someone who runs training programs may need to upgrade their security awareness training. Defense contractor BlueForce has been hit by the Conti ransomware group. The gang posted data from the operation on its leak site along with supposed chat records from its negotiation with BlueForce. The Conti gang has demanded 17 bitcoin for the decryption key. BlueForce is a Virginia-based defense veteran-owned contractor that works with the US Department of Defense and the US Department of State on program management, training and development initiatives.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was confirmed as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Increased security awareness training makes organizations up to 70% less likely to experience damaging cybersecurity incidents like this one.



United States – CaptureRX

https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/capturerx-data-breach-impacts/
Exploit: Ransomware

CaptureRX: Medical Software Company


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.907 = Severe
Texas-based CaptureRx, fell victim to a ransomware attack in which cybercriminals snatched files containing the personal health information (PHI) of more than 24,000 individuals. The security breach impacted 17,655 patients of Faxton St. Luke’s Healthcare and a further 6,777 patients at Gifford Health Care as well as an indeterminate number of Thrifty Drug Store patients. CaptureRx is currently unclear how many of its healthcare provider clients have been affected by the attack. Nor has the company finished its final tally of how many individuals had their PHI exposed because of the incident.



cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.959 = Severe
Data exposed and stolen by the ransomware attackers included names, dates of birth, prescription information, and, for a limited number of patients, medical record numbers. Affected healthcare provider clients were notified of the incident by CaptureRx between March 30 and April 7.

Customers Impacted: 24K +

How it Could Affect Your Business: The medical sector has been absolutely battered by ransomware in the last 12 months. Breaches at service providers like this and Accellion show that cybercriminals are playing smart by hitting targets that offer them access to a variety of information that has value for future attacks.



United States – Alaska Court System (ACS)

https://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/551463-alaska-court-system-forced-offline-by-cyberattack
Exploit: Ransomware

Alaska Court System: Judicial Body


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.572 = Severe
The Alaska Court System (ACS) was forced to temporarily disconnect its online servers this week due to a cyberattack that installed malware on their systems, disrupting virtual court hearings. The court’s website had been taken offline and the ability to search court cases had been suspended while it worked to remove malware that had been installed on its servers. Activities that may be impacted by the ACS taking its website offline include the ability of the public to view court hearings over Zoom, online bail payments, submitting juror questionnaires and sending or receiving emails to or from an ACS email address.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was announced as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Ransomware is the weapon of choice for cybercrime especially against local, state and municipal governments with often weak or outmoded IT departments.



Australia – NSW Labor Party

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/police-investigate-cyber-attack-on-nsw-labor-party-20210505-p57p4y.html
Exploit: Ransomware

NSW Labor Party: Political Organization


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 2.109 = Severe
The ransomware group Avaddon is threatening to release a trove of sensitive information including images of passports, driver’s licenses and employment contracts from a ransomware hit on the NSW Labor Party. The cybercriminals have demanded a response to its ransom request within 240 hours and threatened to launch a denial of service attack against the party if it did not pay. NSW Police has come on board in the investigation.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was announced as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Ransomware is the modern cybercriminal’s weapon of choice. Make sure your clients are taking every possible precaution because 61% of organizations worldwide experienced a damaging ransomware incident in 2020.

 


Australia – Schepisi Communications

https://www.news.com.au/technology/online/hacking/telstra-service-provider-hit-by-cyber-attack-as-hackers-claim-sim-card-information-stolen/news-story/2ff32b2e3634506882102e9c9d012994
Exploit: Hacking

Schepisi Communications: Cloud Storage


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 2.307 = Severe
Melbourne-based Schepisi Communications has been the victim of a suspected ransomware attack. The company’s website has been offline for days after a hacker group said it infiltrated the company’s data systems and posted a disturbing ransom note on the dark web. The company is a service provider for Telstra that supplies phone numbers and cloud storage services. Among Schepisi’s other customers that appeared to have had their information exposed were global food conglomerate Nestle, a Melbourne radio station, an Australian property management firm, and a financial services company based in Victoria.

Individual Impact: No sensitive personal or financial information was announced as compromised in this incident, but the investigation is ongoing.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Malware and ransomware have been the plague of increasingly beleaguered service providers.


India – WedMeGood

https://www.hackread.com/shinyhunters-leak-india-wedmegood-database/
Exploit: Hacking

WedMeGood: Wedding Planning


cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.817 = Severe
Legendary cybercrime gang ShinyHunters has dumped a database belonging to WedMeGood, a popular Indian wedding planning platform. WedMeGood is yet to verify the data breach. Dark web analysts say that the database contains 41.5 GB worth of data. Lately, the hacking group has been focusing on leaking databases of Indian entities.



cybersecurity news represented by agauge showing severe risk


Risk to Business: 1.773 = Severe
Impacted users have had PII exposed including full names, city, gender, phone numbers, email addresses, password hashes, booking leads, last login date, account creation date, Facebook unique ID numbers, vacation descriptions for Airbnb and other wedding details. Site users will want to be aware of the potential of spear-phishing attacks using this data.

Customers Impacted: Unknown

How it Could Affect Your Business: Ransomware attacks have been especially prevalent against targets in India recently. Every organization in the sector should step up phishing resistance training to reduce the chance of falling prey to an attack.


Continue reading

How Backup and Disaster Recovery Protects SMBs

Many SMBs operate with a sense of unrealistic optimism when it comes to data loss and disaster recovery. However, the reality can be quite different and can negatively affect your business if you’re not vigilant. As the rate of digitalization increases, so does the risk of data loss. Can your business afford a data-loss incident?

It doesn’t matter if data loss happens because of human error, cyberattack or natural disaster. It can have far-reaching consequences such as:

 
  1. Severe downtime: For SMBs, per-hour downtime costs vary from $10,000 to $50,000.1

  1. Damage to reputation: One-third of customers will end their association with a business following a severe data loss.2

  1. Regulatory penalties: Failure to protect data can draw penalties worth 2% to 4% or more of company turnover.3

  1. Permanent closure: Some businesses are unable to recover from an incident and close permanently.
 
Prioritizing backup and disaster recovery for your business is very important. A comprehensive backup and disaster recovery solution provides secure, uninterrupted backup and quick data recovery — with a cloud-based architecture that ensures the business runs seamlessly in the event of a disaster.

 

Key Terms Used in Backup and Disaster Recovery

The following terms will give you an idea about the type of actions and processes you should aim to implement within your business:

 
  • Minimum Business Continuity Objective (MBCO)
MBCO signifies the minimum level of output needed after severe disruption to achieve business objectives.
  • Maximum Tolerable Period of Disruption (MTPD)
MTPD is the duration after which the impact on a business caused by minimal or zero output becomes intolerably severe.
  • Recovery Time Objective (RTO)
RTO is the time it takes before employees can start working after a data-loss event. It’s usually measured in minutes.
  • Recovery Point Objective (RPO)
RPO is the amount of work that can be lost and will need to be done again after a data-loss event. It’s usually measured in seconds.

 

Deploy Backup and Disaster Recovery Today

Having an effective backup and disaster recovery solution provides several benefits. Here are the top six:

 
  1. Stay protected against natural disasters
The first half of 2020 alone had close to 200 reported natural disasters. While it’s impossible to stop a natural disaster, you can ensure your data is protected and take the necessary measures to prevent downtime.

 

  1. Minimize the impact of a cyberattack
With the rate of cyberattacks going through the roof and with SMBs being a constant target of attacks, it is essential to have a robust backup and disaster recovery solution to protect your business.

 

  1. Safeguard sensitive data
If your business handles sensitive data like Personally Identifiable Information (PII), measures should be taken to ensure it never ends up in the wrong hands. Safeguarding all critical data can build your business’s reputation and prevent regulatory penalties.

 

  1. Quick recovery
It doesn’t matter how disaster strikes. What matters is how quickly your business bounces back. A good backup and disaster recovery solution helps you get up and running as soon as possible.

 

  1. Reduce the impact of human error
From accidental or intentional misdelivery or deletion to corruption of data, employees can pose a security threat to your business. Deploying backup and disaster recovery is, therefore, crucial. You must also train your employees on the difference between acceptable and unacceptable behavior.

 

  1. Tackle system failure
Unexpected system failure can lead to downtime if you don’t equip your business with backup and disaster recovery.

Remember, it’s your responsibility to protect your business from data loss and its chaotic aftereffects. If you can’t handle this alone, don’t worry. We’re here for you. With our backup and disaster recovery solutions, we can help build a resilient strategy to protect your business against data loss and give you much-needed peace of mind in the event of a disaster.

 
 
 
Article curated and used by permission.
Sources:
  1. TechRadar
  2. IDC Report
  3. GDPR Associates
Continue reading

News & Updates

InTegriLogic is proud to announce the launch of our new website at www.integrilogic.com. The goal of the new website is to make it easier for our existing clients to submit and manage support requests, and provide more information about our services for ...

Contact Us

Learn more about what InTegriLogic can do for your business.

InTegriLogic
1931 W Grant Road Suite 310
Tucson, Arizona 85745