We all like to be “ahead” in life – both personally and in the business world. The latter is especially true when it comes business leadership in small and medium size businesses. While following personal trends like the “in” fashion, seasonal colors and decorating can be fun, following the trends in business can save your business time and money. Being ahead of hackers, malware, spam, spyware, and viruses is just as important when following trends of 2017. Here are some trends in the security field to be aware of as we enter the new year.
- Increase in Ransomware – According to Telegraph Connect, ransomware (where hackers gain control of your data, encrypt it and demand payment to hand over the key) has now become the most profitable malware type in history. “It is time to harden security, by enabling visibility throughout the network – essentially, being able to see everything that connects to it.” If you are unsure if you are protected from ransomware call M&H Consultant today.
- Credential Threats – The trend of using malicious code to breach a company’s defenses has been on the rise over the past two years. More recently hackers do not need to write the code to gain entrance but rather steal the credentials of an employee to gain access instead. Plan for multiple layers of encryption and password protection.
- Smarter Viruses – According to the Insurance Journal, viruse designs are constantly improving and being modernized. So what you learned last year about viruses may well be outdated this year. Newer viruses are better at remaining undetected longer so they can infect more files and give the system owner little indication that the system has been compromised.
- An Increase in Cyber Security Spending – Worldwide spending on cybersecurity is predicted to top $1 trillion for the five-year period from 2017 to 2021, according to the Cybersecurity Market Report, published by Cybersecurity Ventures. Reports indicate an uptick in security spending some where in the vicinity of 12-15% increase. Review your budget to see where you land in this landscape.
- Human Expertise – Security experts are indicating that human expertise intermixed with technology-only solutions will be a trend for 2017. Instead of a software-only approach, the solution is to provide software and people.
Categorised in: Security