Malware And Social Engineering Attacks

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Malware and Social Engineering Attacks

Technology has become an indispensable part of our daily routine. Every machine possess some vulnerabilities that if exposed can cause severe consequences. Computers in general are prone to cyber-attack. One attack that has gain spotlight in recent years is ransomware attack. In this attack the hackers target computers that are using Microsoft windows as their operating system by encrypting data. In return of the encrypted files hackers demand Bitcoins. Despite several precautions many companies and even cities have suffered from this attack.

Recently in Texas hackers infected almost 23 organizations that were connected to local government by ransomware crypto-worm. Hackers paralyzed government computers specifically in Baltimore. At first government officials were not accepting the attack yet when the attackers target several other organizations they release a public statement. In a public statement the officials did not mention any specific details of an attack yet accepted that the attack is ransomware attack. The hackers demanded $100,000 yet Baltimore officials refused to pay them. Due to which the city faced an estimated loss of $18 million ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"lOEXCFeC","properties":{"formattedCitation":"(Lee)","plainCitation":"(Lee)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":73,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/sbFMNDWM/items/UXGFSRMQ"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/sbFMNDWM/items/UXGFSRMQ"],"itemData":{"id":73,"type":"article-newspaper","title":"Texas government bodies hit by ransomware attack","container-title":"BBC News","section":"Technology","source":"www.bbc.com","abstract":"Hackers target 23 organisations in what local officials say was a co-ordinated attack.","URL":"https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-49393479","language":"en-GB","author":[{"family":"Lee","given":"Dave"}],"issued":{"date-parts":[["2019",8,19]]},"accessed":{"date-parts":[["2019",9,11]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Lee). However, other cities choose to pay the hackers. Similarly, last summer two Long Island schools were hit by same attack. The attackers demanded a whopping amount of money, in the form of Bitcoins, from the school administration. This cause school administration to delay the opening of school ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"YNuQe9p5","properties":{"formattedCitation":"({\\i{}Ransomware Attacks on the Rise \\uc0\\u8212{} and Small Towns Are in the Crosshairs})","plainCitation":"(Ransomware Attacks on the Rise — and Small Towns Are in the Crosshairs)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":75,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/sbFMNDWM/items/USVG925W"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/sbFMNDWM/items/USVG925W"],"itemData":{"id":75,"type":"webpage","title":"Ransomware attacks on the rise — and small towns are in the crosshairs","abstract":"\"We see them because attackers see that they're successful,\" said one cybersecurity pro of spike in municipal hacks","URL":"https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ransomware-attacks-on-the-rise-and-governments-are-in-the-crosshairs/","language":"en-US","accessed":{"date-parts":[["2019",9,11]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Ransomware Attacks on the Rise — and Small Towns Are in the Crosshairs).

Generally, small organizations are at particular risk of these attacks. One major reason that this attack is spreading widely is the lack of knowledge among people. Attackers usually spread virus by sending spam emails that contain unsolicited links or through false advertisements. Once people click these links they immediately fell prey to the attack. It is therefore necessary to spread awareness among people regarding the attack. Also, there is a need to constantly update software and operating systems. The organizations that fell prey to ransom ware attack had to pay money because they do not have a proper backup data and had no proper security plan to block the malicious data access. So it is necessary to configure firewalls and maintain backup data regularly to avoid any further distress.

Work Cited

ADDIN ZOTERO_BIBL {"uncited":[],"omitted":[],"custom":[]} CSL_BIBLIOGRAPHY Lee, Dave. “Texas Government Bodies Hit by Ransomware Attack.” BBC News, 19 Aug. 2019. www.bbc.com, https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-49393479.

Ransomware Attacks on the Rise — and Small Towns Are in the Crosshairs. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ransomware-attacks-on-the-rise-and-governments-are-in-the-crosshairs/. Accessed 11 Sept. 2019.