Introduction
The processing of confidential data is essential for most companies operating today. General personal information may include employee records and customer profiles filled with personally identifiable information, financial data files such as invoices and agreements with company payment details, as well as those belonging to customers and suppliers, and business contracts with other businesses (Grimes, 2020). If the storage of this data is not secure, this can lead to a severe data leak. The long-term consequences can be devastating, along with the financial costs of dealing with a data leak containing confidential information. They can lead to a drop in stocks and the closure of businesses.
Secure Storage of Information
The first step to ensuring the security of confidential information that the company works with is creating data protection protocols. Most information security policies are based on the rule of least privilege. The company’s staff and employees from outside have access only to the data they need (Grimes, 2020). As a result, the workflow is never affected, but a premium level of security is maintained.
Protecting specific locations in systems, servers, and the cloud to store sensitive information can be inflexible for companies but also inefficient once data needs to be moved. When dealing with sensitive data, companies should use encryption software instead (Prasad & Rohokale, 2020). Encryption effectively encrypts electronic information, making it look like random characters (Grimes, 2020). Only persons to whom the corresponding key has been issued can view or interact with the content. By protecting data, rather than the storage area, files can move freely through internal systems or be shared outside the protective boundaries set by IT teams while they never become vulnerable.
Preventing The Theft of Information
Attackers can access company data in several ways, including a phishing method that uses unsuspecting employees as a gateway. However, there are also several ways for companies to protect themselves and their dice from such attacks (Alabdan, 2020). The primary and straightforward method that many companies neglect is to update the software. Software and technology companies always add security protocols to their products, but they will not work if applications and devices are updated (Prasad & Rohokale, 2020). The main thing is to be aware of these changes and update the entire set of tools to protect data from hackers.
Companies that want to protect themselves against phishing attacks and hackers can use the anti-phishing toolbar. The phishing protection toolbar is a web browser extension that protects against such attacks when visiting a malicious website. Anti-phishing toolbars check everything clicked on in real time and block any possible threat or attack (Grimes, 2020). They benefit people who do not understand cybersecurity and want to protect their information and data regardless of which site they visit.
Cyberterrorist Attacks
As already mentioned, hackers can use phishing to get the information they need. They are trying to obtain confidential information, such as passwords, usernames, and credit card details, by masquerading as trusted persons using mass email distribution that tries to bypass spam filters (Alabdan, 2020). Emails from popular social networks, banks, auctions, or IT administrators are usually used to attract an unsuspecting public. This is a form of criminally fraudulent social engineering. There is also the concept of targeted phishing – a minor targeted email attack on a specific person or organization to hack their protection (Alabdan, 2020). A targeted phishing attack is carried out after investigating the target and has a personalized component designed to force the target to do something contrary to their interests.
EMP
People are increasingly vulnerable to natural disasters and military attacks on energy systems. Electromagnetic magnetic pulses (EMP) can destroy electronics, leaving the environment untouched but without simple means of survival (Lim et al., 2021). While a massive solar coronal mass ejection (CME) could shut down a significant portion of the world’s electrical grid, electronic devices not connected to the grid will not be damaged. Nevertheless, the electromagnetic pulse emitted by a nuclear explosion is very different because the first of its three phases occurs within billionths of a second. This extremely fast EMP can travel hundreds of miles from an exploding nuclear bomb with a voltage potential of 50,000 volts or more per meter (Lim et al., 2021). This is more than enough to damage unshielded semiconductor electronic equipment permanently.
Protection from EMP
Electromagnetic shielding prevents electromagnetic waves from affecting sensitive electronics — everything from televisions and microwave ovens to mobile phones and baby monitors, as well as critical computer processors in modern smart devices. Painting the screen provides complete coverage at a much lower cost (Lim et al., 2021). In addition, the conductive paint can also remove heat from sensitive electronic devices, allowing them to regulate their temperature and preventing the thermal shutdown of modern electronics. It turns out that a very effective measure of protection against EMP, or shielding, can be made from aluminum foil. Ordinary heavy-duty aluminum foil has blocked all nine million watts of radio frequency energy from entering the radios.
Conclusion
Since threats to data security are constantly changing and evolving, any time spent waiting or delaying a data protection plan implementation or improvement poses a significant risk. These attacks highlight the vulnerability of data and the lack of reliable security strategies in organizations of any size. It is necessary to adhere to the following steps to improve the overall security of the company: knowing what needs to be protected; a firm password policy; a disaster preparedness plan; encryption of confidential information.
References
Alabdan, R. (2020). Phishing attacks survey: types, vectors, and technical approaches. Future Internet, 12(10), 168. Web.
Grimes, R. A. (2020). Hacking Multifactor Authentication. John Wiley & Sons.
Lim, C., Min, K., Kim, K., & Park, Y. J. (2021). Cost Effective and Sustainable Test Methods to Investigate Vulnerabilities of EMP Attack on Existing Buildings Using Public Frequency Devices. Sustainability, 13(2), 570. Web.
Prasad, R., & Rohokale, V. (2020). Artificial intelligence and machine learning in cyber security. Cyber Security: The Lifeline of Information and Communication Technology, 231-247. Web.