THE REALITY OF CYBERCRIMES
Without a doubt, it is known that criminals, in their different forms and varieties, have a particular target; things of value!
Consider the fact that technology has made computers become an integral part of businesses, governments, organizations, and individuals, and the reality that these systems contain valuable information and you naturally see a workspace for criminals.
As more people continue to flood their smartphones, computers and other devices with valuable data, potential targets are made for cybercriminals.
Given, these criminals no longer have to physically break into your house or worry about the drilling into the safe in your bedroom, leaving you physical evidence of their activities. Now, they can attack remotely, thanks to the internet, without leaving a trace, and possibly without retribution too.
Cybercrimes evolved from Phreaking (phone attacks), Morris worm (first computer worm), Ransomeware (malicious software) in the 70’s and 80’s which needed physical interaction, to email and web browser cybercrimes in the 90’s.
Thanks to the advent of social media in the 2000’s, cybercrimes took on a new look in the rise of identity and information theft, cyber-extortion, financial fraud etc. Now, the fast-paced tech landscape has given rise to the exponential growth of cybercrime activities, e.g. through botnets.
These realities have made the cybercrime industry and organizations work on data protection and security by asking the following questions;
Where is private data located and who is accessing the data?
Which users have access to the data and should they have such access?
How is the data accessed?
Who is responsible for data monitoring?
What is the acceptable level of risk and who is responsible for data loss/breach?
Can lost data be determined in the case of a breach?
Are the processes for answering these questions repeatable, timely, scalable and cost-effective?
The ultimate question is:
