Cybersecurity - You "Need to Know"

The word “HACKED” strikes fear in the hearts of every person who uses any computing device to connect on public networks, such as the internet. According to the University of Maryland, we see a cyber-attack every 39 seconds. 78% of organizations in the USA experienced a cyber-attack in the past year.

The outbreak of COVID-19 has solidified our reliance on technologies. It has forced the world to shift to an increasingly more digital and online paradigm. Additionally, the disruptive transformation to the world's use of online technologies helps boost productivity. While most ecosystems around the globe might have come to a halt as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the universe of cybercrime has just found new pathways to propagate and the target of its grips is every single one of us who connects online for whatever purpose.

Cybercriminals are getting more intrepid and creative with the ways and means by which they deploy and execute their disruptive hacks on a moment-by-moment basis..

According to CISCO Systems, “Cyber security is?the application of technologies, processes, and controls to protect systems, networks, programs, devices and data from cyber-attacks. It aims to reduce the risk of cyber-attacks and protect against the unauthorized exploitation of systems, networks, and technologies.”

Cyber-security or IT security is broadly segmented into 5 main sub-categories:

1.?????Network security- Whether via desktops, mobile phones, portable devices, the IoT, or otherwise, the purpose of network security is to implement practice a best effort to keep unapproved or malignant clients from getting inside your personal or organizational private network. This seeks to ensure that ease of use, dependability, confidentiality, integrity, and availability are perpetually maintained. This sort of safety is important to keep a programmer(s) from getting information inside you and/or your organization's private network, thus protecting all digital assets in such ecosystems. Additionally, network security seeks to keep any threats from adversely influencing your friendly users' capacity to access or utilize allowable digital assets by way of the network infrastructure.

Challenges in network security are increasing as most businesses are going global and services are migrated to the public cloud. As the business spreads, the number of endpoints also increases, thus awareness and diligence in the area of network security in paramount to all.

2.?????Internet security- Internet security includes the insurance of data that is sent and received to and from assets, specifically, via the internet. Internet security strategies are intended to screen inbound and outbound webstreams for malware and other undesirable traffic. This insurance is facilitated by way systems such as firewalls, antimalware, and antispyware, to name a few.

3.?????Cloud security- Applications, information, and personalities are moving to the cloud, which means clients are interfacing directly to the Internet and do not always have the assurance of the conventional security stack. Cloud security is frequently used to facilitate the use of programming as-a-administration/Software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications via the public, private, and/or hybrid cloud. The possibility of isolated and/or combined cloud-access security intermediary (CASB), secure Internet passage (SIG), and cloud-based threats can present the potential of severe danger to the digital assets of targets ranging from individuals to global enterprises.

4.?????Application security- Applications should be created and coded with as much of a mind about security as possible (DevSecOps). Such represents the initial stages towards helping to ensure the applications we all use are protected against assaults. This additional layer of safety should include thoughts such as developers and QA personal assessing the application's source code and identifying as well as remediating any identified vulnerabilities. As end-users, we should perpetually remain diligent about keeping all software patches and updates current.

5.?????Endpoint security- Endpoint security seeks to provide assurance at the device (node) level. Appliances that might be exposed by endpoint security include devices such as PDAs, tablets, PCs, and personal computers. Endpoint security will keep your devices from getting exploited by noxious organizations that might present a threat to you and/or your organization's assets. Advance malware, antivirus, cyber insurance as well as maintaining current updates, patches, triggers, and alerts are examples of good endpoint security practices.

The following are some common exploits that all computers users should be aware of:

1.?????Ransomware- Any malicious code or application that locks your data and asks for ransom in return for your data.

2.?????Spyware- Are applications that feed and steal your data and important credentials or any confidential data that can be harmful if leaked.

3. Viruses- can be worms, infectious code, or documents that harm your device or data stored in your device.

It is high time for each and every computer, mobile, and any/all online technology users to understand the basics of cyber-security, It is equally as important for each user to be the guardians of our privacy protection so we may remain diligent against all the of threats that are "clear and present" to every user and device that connects into cyber-space.?