BENGALURU: While emerging technologies such as generative AI, machine learning, and deep fake are used across various businesses to increase productivity and help business leaders make informed decisions, cybercriminals continue to reinvent themselves using the latest technologies.
Last week, the US National Security Agency released a report on the recent techniques used by threat actors for phishing. To execute the malware on host systems, cybercriminals send malicious hyperlinks or attachments.
When users download these knowingly or unknowingly, it gives the hackers access to their systems. Once they have gained initial access, these cybercriminals can steal information or cause damage to
the systems.
Hackers in India employ a range of new technologies for cyber attacks, ranging from AI to quantum computing.
According to network security platform WiJungle’s CEO and co-founder Karmesh Gupta, cybercriminals have used AI for automation and enhanced attack efficiency, quantum computing to break traditional encryption, deepfake technology for impersonation, and machine learning for identifying blockchain weaknesses.
The hackers have also managed to exploit IoT vulnerabilities and loopholes in 5G network. The broader Asia-Pacific region has experienced a 16% year-on-year increase in attacks, equating to an average of 1,835 attacks each week.
“Biometric hacking, supply chain attacks, and zero-day exploits were also prevalent. Additionally, hackers in India utilised technologies such as phishing, smishing, malware, ransomware, and business email compromise as part of their cyber attack arsenal,” Gupta explains. Phishing attacks are carried out by hackers by sending spam emails/messages.
Users should be cautious while clicking on links or downloading attachments from unknown sources. The legitimacy of such emails and websites must be verified and a reliable antivirus programme must be used, says Prashant Dey, faculty technology at Hero Vired.
Dey explains that in malware attacks, hackers create malicious software and trick users into installing that software. These programmes contain back-doors that could be used by hackers to obtain all of the user data or install additional software.
“These are made by skilled coders who are adept at writing intricate codes. Malware can infiltrate any system and either steal data or demand a ransom to get it back.
These include viruses, Trojan horses, and ransomware. Using a reliable antivirus programme, regularly updating the operating system and the software, and avoiding downloads from unreliable sources can help in avoiding such attacks,” he explains.
According to a report by Think Teal and Veeam, 74% of Indian CIO’s said cyber attacks were the main cause of business disruption in today’s digitised business world.
The report revealed that 80% of ransomware attacks specifically target an organisation’s backup infrastructure and 70% of Indian CISOs agreed that the non-alignment of IT and Backup teams was the primary reason for increased ransomware attacks.
In an advisory last month, the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) issued a high security risk alert for Google Chrome users.
“Users can combat this by not using the application until a patch or update is made available. Thus, the only way is to stay informed about recent attacks and keep them from falling victim to traps,” says Dey.