When was the last time you revisited your organization’s email security practices? Is your current software up to the task of defending your data against newer and more sophisticated cyber attacks? And is your team armed with the information and education needed to respond if it isn’t? These are questions that are taking on greater significance as advancing technology increases our susceptibility to phishing attacks. Phishing is one of the most prevalent forms of email attack, accounting for 33.3 % of cases. So organizations need to do more to combat it.
Most of us depend on email for business, personal correspondence, and general life upkeep, and many tend to use our work email system to do so. In a bid to speed up tasks and operations, one might be tempted to sacrifice security for the sake of ease, forgoing inconveniences like two-factor authentication and other similar safeguards. While that may seem like a small omission to some, it’s important to remember that it only takes one successful phishing attempt for all that sensitive information in your email (and potentially your entire account or business!) to become public information. Organizations need to be hyper-aware of this and plan accordingly.
Where are the risks?
Let’s start with clearing up what we mean when talking about email security. Malicious emails can take many different forms. To name a few, there is Business Email Compromise (BEC), where a threat actor impersonates a business leader in the hope of conning the recipient into a money transfer. There are also malicious file attachments that may seem innocuous, but which carry embedded malware that infiltrates your computer and your company’s network. Lastly, there’s phishing, which aims to deceive the recipient into clicking a link that leads to a dangerous website. The site may contain malicious code. However, the most common reason for most phishing emails is to compromise a user’s account or device. While all of these methods can lead to the leaking of sensitive information, phishing is the most prevalent – and with the advent of generative AI, attackers have found it much easier to create sophisticated and targeted attacks.
Think of the many things you might use your email for. Booking travel? That often means disclosing your credit card details, and passport ID. A government service? That might involve providing your social security number. Following up on a doctor’s appointment? Sensitive medical history could be accessible to hackers.
Who is vulnerable?
All email users face threats from cyberattacks. While different industries experience different impacts, no business that operates in the digital world is safe from these attempts. Industries like manufacturing and shipping are particularly vulnerable, as they offer attackers access to both IP theft and product disruption as a tool for negotiation and potential ransom. But they are by no means the only target. Brand impersonation is another area that continues to be a major issue for all businesses, with companies like FedEx, DHL, Facebook, DocuSign, Mastercard, and Netflix experiencing notable upticks in the last year.
What can you do?
The good news is that businesses no longer have to employ a roster of complicated applications and services to protect their information. The development of consolidated platforms has helped simplify cybersecurity by providing a single pane of glass view that detects and blocks threats in real time, while also preventing data loss and enabling compliance with industry regulations. Modern solutions incorporate AI such as artificial neural networks, useful for recognizing patterns, [and] deep learning, which improve computer vision, speech recognition, natural language processing and image classification. This means that incoming cyber-attacks are dealt with before they can land in an inbox.
These days, there is no shortage of helpful suggestions for improving digital hygiene and knowing the signs of a phishing attempt. But with more advanced hackers and cyberattackers, organizations need more than good instincts to protect their information – they need good, ongoing, company-wide training.
As it stands, 26% of organizations are failing to provide any IT security training to end-users, and many of the programs that do exist are insufficient to meet the specific challenges of the moment. Undergoing comprehensive, current, and expert-developed cybersecurity training is absolutely critical to securing your data. Effective training should educate the user and cultivate awareness, but should also include practical, immersive simulations in preparation for real-world situations. It should inform users on how to prevent attacks, while also providing them with the resources to act quickly and effectively should one occur. This means getting familiar with backup and recovery processes so that nobody is caught without a plan of action in a worst case scenario. In the event of a breach, navigating the situation with a cool head and clear procedure can significantly minimize damage done and time lost. Ultimately, finding the right software is important, but the tools are only as good as the user behind them.
As phishing technology has progressed, so have threat detection capabilities, breeding a new tier of cybersecurity tools to safeguard your data and give you peace of mind. As the saying goes, information is power. Don’t wait to safeguard yours.
About the Author
Andy Syrewicze, Security Evangelist at Hornetsecurity, is a 20+ year IT Pro specializing in M365, cloud technologies, security, and infrastructure. By day, he’s a Security Evangelist for Hornetsecurity, leading technical content. By night, he shares his IT knowledge online or over a cold beer. He holds the Microsoft MVP award in Security. https://www.hornetsecurity.com/en/
