Covid security threats; crucial things for you to be aware of:
Quote of the week…
“Ransomware presents the most immediate danger to UK businesses… the criminals responsible often operate beyond our borders, are increasingly successful in their endeavours, and pose a global challenge. We must fight together to ensure no place becomes a safe haven.” – Lindy Cameron, CEO of Britain’s National Cyber Security Centre
Our pre-pandemic world is a distant memory and what seemed strange last year is now the new normal. One thing has remained the same, cyber-criminals are not going anywhere. In reality, they have become even more active and they continue to exploit changing situations for their own benefits. Below are five of the top threats born or exacerbated during Covid19.
- NHS Test and Trace service: Criminals are sending phishing emails claiming the recipient has been in contact with someone diagnosed with Covid19. These missives point to fake websites used to steal information or infect devices.
- Vaccine passports: Users receive texts purporting to be from the NHS asking them to register for a vaccine passport; they are then sent to a fake website to submit personal details.
- Royal Mail Phishing scams: These scams are growing more sophisticated through the use of software, to check just how old and unpatched your system is, before letting through to the malicious website.
- Ransomware: This is the fastest growing type of cybercrime with several attacks happening somewhere on the planet every minute.
- Hybrid working: New normal work environs have prompted a rush of “welcome back to the office” emails supposedly from the office manager or CIO, which include links to a bogus updated hybrid working plan, research from Malware Bytes shows.
Below is an example of potential spam. Most of these scams are not so crude; they are normally very convincing
