DALLAS, Oct. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- New AT&T*
research in the latest AT&T Cybersecurity Insights report, "The
CEO's Guide to Navigating the Threat Landscape," shows that most
cyberattacks impacting today's businesses are "known" or common
threats.
The mainstreaming of cyberattack methods has made it possible
for anyone from a nation state to a student to launch an attack on
an organization. While the hype and uncertainty surrounding new
cybersecurity threats or vulnerabilities paint the picture that
cyberattacks are seemingly unstoppable, in fact, more than 90% of
the attacks seen in the past year were "known." Having the right
security measures may have helped prevent those attacks.
AT&T research shows that:
- 90% of companies experienced a malware attack, where infected
software infiltrated their network in the past year.
- Ransomware, where attackers threaten an attack in exchange for
money or valuable information, and information-stealing software
attacks increased sevenfold between July and August 2016.
- In the past year, 73% of companies suffered at least one
Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack.
It's not just gaps in security protections that leave companies
vulnerable to these attacks. An employee clicking a bad link, a
simple mistake, can also cause a breach. More than 7,000 businesses
in the U.S. suffered total combined losses of around $740 million after employees fell victim to
email-based phishing scams from 2013 - 2015.
"The daunting depiction of newly discovered security threats
often gets attention from media and business leaders alike. But in
fact, most attackers are targeting businesses using forms of
attacks we already know about and can help defend against," said
Mo Katibeh, senior vice president of
Advanced Solutions, AT&T. "In today's digital age, businesses
need to remain vigilant about deploying and updating core security
protections, and in educating employees on how their actions might
impact the company's security."
So how can businesses help protect themselves from falling
victim to these attacks? "The CEO's Guide to Navigating the Threat
Landscape" provides more detail on what cybersecurity attacks are
affecting businesses and how organizations can work to protect
against them.
"Protecting against known cybersecurity threats is crucial. Last
year, linked2pay was targeted by a DDoS attack, but we were able to
quickly activate our breach plan and protect our systems using
AT&T's services and expertise," said Robert McShirley, CEO of linked2pay. "Had we
not, our company could have faced serious repercussions. Our advice
to other companies is to make sure you are updating your defenses
to protect against the threats already out there. Helping to
protect against what we already know could prove critical to your
business."
Essential steps every business should take today include:
- Build your defenses around known threats;
- Create a security culture within your organization;
- Keep current with security patches, logs, and software updates;
and
- Implement new technologies with security in mind.
To learn more, check out "The CEO's Guide to Navigating the
Threat Landscape" and follow the livestream of the AT&T
18th Annual Cybersecurity conference for the latest
security news and trends.
*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by
subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T
brand and not by AT&T Inc.
About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) helps millions
around the globe connect with leading entertainment, mobile,
high-speed internet and voice services. We're the world's largest
provider of pay TV. We have TV customers in the U.S. and 11 Latin
American countries. We offer the best global coverage of any U.S.
wireless provider.* And we help businesses worldwide serve their
customers better with our mobility and highly secure cloud
solutions.
Additional information about AT&T products and services is
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