Page 80 - Cyber Defense eMagazine Special RSA Conference Annual Edition for 2022

health systems, financial companies, and manufacturing, including construction, supply chains,
distribution, and sales.

The impact of these attacks can take any number of forms, including: malware, including but not limited
to, ransomware (which disables the ability to access IT-systems until a ransom is paid); business
interruption (income lost because of the inability to access systems); data restoration (reconstructing
“lost” company and customer data); social engineering/phishing (loss of money based on the
impersonation of a colleague, client or vendor); regulatory fines and penalties; liability to third-parties if
their information is compromised; and reputational harm. Estimates for losses for these events runs from
$20 billion in ransomware costs alone for 2021 up to $10.5 trillion (or $20 Million per minute) expected to
be lost/spent by 2025 to respond, address and fight these attacks globally.

According to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA), the FBI and the NSA, the ongoing
success of these ransomware attacks has only further encouraged cyberthieves around the globe and
should put businesses of every size on high alert throughout 2022.

Specifically, CISA has advised that ransomware attackers are focusing their attention on critical
infrastructure industries throughout the US, including:

• Emergency water services
• Energy sector
• Communications
• Financial services
• Healthcare sector

Despite these grim predictions, it is imperative to remember that there are myriad tools available to
protect businesses against and mitigate the impact of cyber-related events.

Internal Security Protocols / Controls

Cybersecurity experts have identified many of the key vulnerabilities that criminals manipulate to enter
computer systems, and how to fix them, including:

• Multi-factor authentication tools to safely access internal computer systems
• Robust Desktop Security Protocols, including virtual private networks, data encryption, complex
passwords, firewalls, and restricted access to admin rights
• Active management of systems and configurations
• A continuous hunt for network intrusions and third-party exposure threats
• Update and upgrade software immediately
• Develop and exercise a system recovery plan, including regular testing of backups for data
integrity and restorability and preparing and annually testing of incident response/ business
continuity plan

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