Featured article by Asaf Fybish
In many ways, 2021 was a difficult year for cybersecurity. Solar Winds, Colonial Pipeline, and hundreds of other high-profile breaches caused significant economic and security consequences. Ransomware struck heavily, wreaking havoc on many small and medium-sized enterprises. Perhaps most concerning was how adversaries targeted and exploited critical infrastructure and supply chain security flaws faster than before. However, we are beginning to hear about some of the facts that will undoubtedly be relevant in 2022.
Log4j Vulnerability
Log4j, a Java-based logging software, is included in the Apache Logging Services. Log4j is one of the many Java logging frameworks that are used by millions of Java applications on the internet. Log4j keeps track of events such as system failures and ordinary processes and sends out diagnostic notifications to system administrators and users. A good example of Log4j in action is when a bad web link is clicked and a 404 error message appears. The message indicates that there is no such webpage on the web server that hosts the web URL you tried to visit. For the server’s system administrators, Log4j is also used to log the occurrence.
Log4Shell
The Log4j vulnerability is caused by breaching Log4Shell, an obscure yet widely used piece of software found on millions of computers. The program is used to keep track of a variety of activities that occur behind the scenes in various computer systems.
A huge number of hackers have already abused Log4Shell vulnerability. These include ransomware gangs encrypting Minecraft servers, Bitcoin mining hacking groups, and Chinese and North Korean hackers aiming to get sensitive information from their geopolitical rivals.
Cloud Data Breach
To expedite their digital transformation, businesses are increasingly turning to the cloud. Despite the rising popularity of cloud computing, many organizations are concerned about data security. Improper administration of RDP (remote desktop protocol), misconfigurations, inadequate authentication, and shadow IT use, among other things, are some of the leading sources of cloud vulnerabilities.
IoT Vulnerabilities
Digital transformation aims to make businesses more data-driven. One of the primary sources of data is the Internet of Things (IoT). IoT devices are susceptible mostly due to a lack of security mechanisms built-in to protect against attacks. IoT cyberattacks have more than doubled in 2021 compared to the previous year, according to Kaspersky. Cyber thieves might use vulnerabilities in IoT devices to get access to sensitive data and launch attacks against other linked systems.
Ransomware Attacks
Traditional ransomware attacks involved malicious programs encrypting data with public-key RSA encryption and then destroying them if the victim did not pay the ransom. Threat actors steal data from enterprises in addition to encrypting the files in ‘double extortion ransomware attacks’. In these, in addition to demanding a ransom to decrypt data, attackers may threaten to reveal the stolen data unless a second payment is made.
Credential Stuffing
Credential stuffing is a cyberattack in which credentials obtained from one service’s data breach are used to log into another unrelated service. With the use of more sophisticated bots that try several logins at the same time and pretend to come from various IP addresses, such assaults are on the rise. The fact that many users employ the same username/password combination across several sites makes credential stuffing assaults quite successful. If this practice continues, credential stuffing will become a major problem.
Summary
These are some of the top vulnerabilities we can expect in 2022. However, security awareness across an organization remains one of the most important practices. When a reasonable strategy is put together with rules and procedures that support a holistic team idea, security awareness works best. Participants use security awareness to report harmful circumstances, suspicious activities, and general safety violations by following a set of defined norms and procedures. To be effective, the security department uses orientation meetings, training, security updates via newsletters, e-mails, and instructive signs to inculcate security awareness among individuals from all levels of the company as well as external partners.
