CrowdStrike has revealed some alarming information that points to the increased threat of cyber-attacks facing an organization. In 2020, threat actors had, on average, been able to infiltrate the cyber defenses of an organization in just four and a half hours – which is half the time it took to penetrate the same defenses in 2019.   

Hackers have adopted a wealth of techniques allowing their attacks to occur faster and with an increasing threat. The senior vice president of intelligence at CrowdStrike, Adam Meyers, stresses the importance of utilizing cloud-native technology to reduce and prevent companies from being victims to intense cyber-attacks.

Global movements imperil Europe

The focal point of cybercrime has largely been Latin America, as hackers would generally concentrate on targeting defenses that were closer to their vicinity. However, CrowdStrike has noticed the shift in these cybercriminals’ attack movements towards the continent of Europe.

Alongside the change in locale, there has also been a change observed in these attacks’ target as essential services such as healthcare providers are also not safe any longer. Companies that have been working tirelessly to develop vaccines for COVID-19 are seen as vulnerable and are at the greatest risk of cyberattacks. 

104 recorded healthcare organizations fell victim to ransomware attacks alone in 2020, including pharmaceutical and biomedical companies. CrowdStrike feels that there is every reason to believe that this trend is likely to continue in the coming years. 

Nation-states are more involved than ever

CrowdStrike has been able to track nation-state adversaries responsible for infiltrating public and private sector networks to compromise, steal, or destroy valuable information. Through this, they have highlighted the improved tactics adopted by these cybercriminals, which has allowed them to go unnoticed during their attacks while leaving a false trail for their victims to follow. 

With the “new normal” work from home policies coming into effect in nearly every company, a platform for increased cyber-attacks has been set up. Thus, it is necessary for every organization to have an iron-clad security system in order to protect not just their data but their employees as well. 

Organizations need to be aware of the threat posed to those at the bottom, as well as the top of the hierarchy. A common strategy being used by hackers is to try and access the systems through those further up the chain of command to avoid being detected.

According to CrowdStrike, eCrime attacks comprised 79% of intrusions made through hands-on-keyboard activity. What makes it more worrying is that these intrusions are occurring in places like software suppliers, which means that one intrusion can allow for widespread access to entire networking systems. 

As daunting a task as it may seem, there are always preventative measures that can be undertaken. Companies must be wary of the threat they face and take appropriate steps in order to prevent a grave loss. In today’s environment, this is an approach that must be carried out.