Insights to strengthen your cybersecurity against emerging risks

Experts from the FBI to Interpol are sounding the alarm — cybersecurity threats are up as a result of COVID-19. The pandemic has unleashed more than a health crisis. It has also unleashed vulnerabilities that cybercriminals are exploiting.

• Large-scale data breaches increased 273% in the first quarter of 2020, as cybercriminals ramped up to take advantage of coronavirus confusion.
• Malicious domain name registrations experienced a 569% increase, targeting keywords, such as “coronavirus” and “COVID,” which are underpinning malicious activities, such as C2 attacks, malware deployment and phishing.
• Cyberattack complaints are up to 4,000 per day, a 400% increase over pre-coronavirus numbers, and ransomware attacks are up 800%.

The advent of COVID-19 has created a perfect storm of security risks for enterprises, opening a door to a whole new world of vulnerabilities — from more remote workers to accelerating ecommerce.

Cybersecurity resources to protect your business

But your organization doesn’t need to fall victim to these threats. With the right guidance, you can strengthen your cybersecurity posture and protect your business. As part 2020 National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM) this October, we put together a series of resources to help kickstart your cybersecurity journey. Here are some highlights, which you can put to use today:

On-demand webinar: The New Cybersecurity Landscape

“Friendly hacker” Keren Elazari provided insider insight into the reality of cybercrime today, including new strategies since COVID-19. To stay steps ahead of these evolving threats, organizations have to think like cybercriminals.

On-demand webinar: Navigating Cybersecurity Threats Today

Four experts, including a former FBI special agent in the Cyber Crimes/Counterintelligence Squad, share insights on new cyberthreats since COVID-19, and what measures organizations can take to mitigate the vulnerabilities cybercriminals are exploiting now.

Article: What’s Causing the Cybersecurity Skills Gap

Owen Winn of Rackspace Cloud Academy discusses today’s cybersecurity skills gap from a unique angle, addressing why the gap persists, and an innovative way to identify and nurture the next generation of security talent.

Article: Five golden rules of security planning in the AWS cloud

Security is a shared responsibility between you and your cloud provider. Do you part by following these five security engineering “golden rules” for planning and building your cloud environment.

Article: DDoS attack trends in the network layer during the COVID-19 crisis

Cloudflare addresses the increasing DDoS attacks on the network layer, so that security teams can be better prepared to thwart these evolving threats.

Article: What is data security?

Data breaches cause a range of challenges, including public relations fallout, non-compliance penalties and productivity losses. A solid data security strategy can mitigate the risks, with essential data security technology and best practices.

Take the cybersecurity risk self-assessment

Is your organization ready to defend itself against the new and evolving cyber threats? Find out with the new Cybersecurity Risk Self-Assessment from Rackspace Technology. You’ll gain a deeper understanding of your security posture and identify any security gaps. A cloud expert will be available to answer your questions and share best practices on minimizing your risks. Get started now.