The Data Driver

The crippling financial implications of online banking security incidents have been brought to light by the latest Kaspersky Lab report into cybersecurity threats in the financial sector. The report shows that an accident involving a bank’s online banking services costs the organization $1,754,000  on average - that’s double the price of recovering from a malware incident, which costs as much as $825,000  on average to resolve.
The study shows that 61 % of cybersecurity incidents affecting online banking come with additional costs for the institution targeted - including data loss, the loss of brand/ company reputation, confidential information becoming leaked, and more. These findings, and others in the report, are urging financial institutions to consider the cost implications of cybersecurity threats and put appropriate measures in place to protect themselves and their customers from incidents involving online banking - particularly from DDoS attacks, which can threaten online ban…

Intel Security has announced an enhanced unified defense architecture designed to empower organizations to more effectively protect today’s new digital economy of trust, time and money. No longer is our economy a physical one, but one of connected networks and systems where cybercriminals have put us on the defensive. This new second economy, has put us in a world where more than money is at stake and where private and public sectors are fighting against time and working to justify trust.

One in five Internet users assume their passwords are of no value to cyber criminals, according to a survey conducted by Kaspersky Lab and B2B International. However, passwords are the keys to the account holders’ personal data, private lives, and even their money - and if they are stolen the consequences can affect not only individual users, but also their contacts, warns Kaspersky Lab.

Jimmy Kimmel, comedian and late night host of Jimmy Kimmel Live, replaces Lily Collins (Mirror, Mirror) as McAfee’s most dangerous celebrity to search for online. For the eighth year in a row, McAfee researched popular culture’s most famous people to reveal the riskiest personalities on the Web. The McAfee Most Dangerous CelebritiesTM study revealed that an eclectic mix of comedians and musicians are among the most dangerous.
Jimmy Kimmel is the second male to find his way to the No. 1 spot (moving up from No. 39) following Brad Pitt in 2008. DJ Armin van Buuren takes the number two spot behind Kimmel, and Ciara, the third. Additional celebrities in the top 10 include Blake Shelton, Britney Spears (holding her place at No.7), and three New Jersey natives: Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi and Chelsea Handler.

IT and cybersecurity professionals should resolve now to gear up for accelerated change and complexity in 2014, especially in cybersecurity, data privacy and big data, says global nonprofit IT association ISACA.
“The pace of change expected in 2014 will put incredible pressure on technology professionals in the workplace with a focus on keeping IT risk in check while at the same time delivering value to the business. But this is also a chance for the IT department to be a strategic partner with the business on navigating these issues and opportunities,” said Bhavesh Bhagat, CISM, CGEIT, CEO of EnCrisp, cofounder of Confident Governance and member of ISACA’s new Emerging Business and Technology Committee.

Numerous Maybank customers might recently have fallen into the trap of phishing emails. The emails were sent with an intention to steal the username and passwords of the customers. The phishing site was modulated in such a way that at every step an email containing the customer's data was transmitted to the attacker via email. The email invited users to click on Maybank phishing websites. Once the customer filled the phishing form and clicked on the submit button, post entering the username and password, the details were immediately sent to the attacker.

Trend Micro Incorporated has announced the incentive schemes for Partner Sales & Presales Representative for Trend Micro Deep Discovery and Deep Security Products. The schemes for the ‘simple to buy, simpler to deploy and simplest to manage’ solutions closes for this Quarter on 24th December, 2013.

“We have marked the last quarter of the ‘year of the channels’ with special value proposition for our partners. The schemes introduced are certain to assist them in reaching out to greater audience with our Deep Discovery and Deep Security products. It is our constant expedition to support partners in increasing their profitability; reducing their cost of business and at the same time making sure they build a huge services business. We are affirmative that we will receive positive feedback and participation for the same,” said Mr. Dhanya Thakkar, Managing Director, Trend Micro for India & SAARC.

HP announced HP Threat Central, a community-sourced security intelligence platform that will enable automated, real-time collaboration between organizations to combat advanced cyber threats.

The sophistication of cyberattacks has grown substantially in recent years, as adversaries both specialize and share intelligence, tools and plans in order to improperly obtain data and disrupt critical enterprise functions. In isolation, organizations struggle to stay ahead of this new breed of collaborative attacks, placing themselves in constant risk of financial, competitive and reputation losses.

Advanced persistent threats (APTs) use sophisticated, blended techniques that leverage both web and email channels to deliver malware that has never been seen before and can live undetected for months. APTs are targeted, multifaceted, ongoing efforts designed to elude traditional defenses of signature-based antivirus and firewalls for the theft of intellectual property and confidential data in a government setup or large enterprises. Some of the most prominent examples of APTs include Aurora, Flame, Stuxnet, Nitro, Night Dragon and Duqu. 

APTs are also a prototype for other targeted attacks that are now victimizing enterprises of all shapes and sizes. For example, the same APT technology used by China to hack Google, Adobe, and approximately 30 other companies in Aurora Internet Explorer Zero-Day Attack is now being used by cybercriminals to steal data from other organizations as well. Stuxnet which infected Iran’s uranium enrichment centrifuges can be a source of inspiration for cyber…

It is a truth universally acknowledged that every device on earth--mobile or desktop—has a seer possibility of being infected by some sort of malware at one point of time in one form or the other. However, the propensity of a malware attack is a subject of dispute. Served in myriad, disguised forms, this keeps IT managers in every organization always on their heels the year round. Given the threat landscape becoming complex, it is important for organizations and individuals to understand the need to deal with malware threats in time. But it is seen that most organizations take these threats lightly. They are potential danger to a company's data and an individual's privacy.
Malware travels through a number of means such as malicious URLs, SMS phishing (also known as smishing), application downloads, file transfers, pen drives, advertisements, etc. Since the threat landscape has shifted to mobile because of increased usages of mobile internet through smart devices, malware thre…