SMU Community Chat
November 9, 2021
Crowe Expert: Don’t Be Complacent About Cybersecurity
Written by Tim Triplett
Ransomware is a growth industry, netting some $20 billion from victims in 2021. A ransomware attack can happen at any time, to any business large or small, with devastating consequences. “It’s not just the big Colonial Pipeline incidents you read in the news. It’s happening to smaller organizations as well. A lot of times it’s their controls that are the weakest,” said Crowe cybersecurity expert Michael Del Giudice during last Wednesday’s Steel Market Update Community Chat.
How do cybersecurity breaches occur? Hackers with criminal intent usually begin with reconnaissance as they gather online information about a potential target. Then they look for a point of entry, often taking advantage of an unsuspecting employee who may have a weak password or can be tricked into clicking on an infected email attachment. That’s the pivot point at which they gain entry and can search for other system vulnerabilities and install malware. They may look for ways to extract data that they could then sell or, in the case of ransomware, block the company’s access to its critical systems until they make a ransom payment.
