HUB Weekly Digest: Data Breaches, Edge Computing, US Water Infrastructure and New Ransomware Groups
HUB Security’s weekly digest covers top stories happening around the world related to cyber attacks, threats and global cybersecurity news.
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IBM Report Finds Pandemic Led to More Expensive Data Breaches
According to a report by IBM security, data breaches hit record highs in terms of cost due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even before the pandemic, data breaches were becoming a more frequent problem for organizations, but due to multiple factors, they became more problematic in the past year.
IBM Security hired Ponemon Institute to compile its “Cost of a Data Breach report 2021” where they surveyed 500 organizations that were victims of data breaches. (Source)
Edge Computing Emerges as Next Big Cybersecurity Challenge
Adoption of edge computing platforms has begun to soar as organizations discover the benefits of processing and analyzing data in near real time at the point where it is created and consumed. The only fly in the ointment now is that with each edge computing platform that gets added to the extended enterprise the attack surface that needs to be defended expands.
IDC forecasts the global edge computing market to reach $250 billion by 2024; a compounded annual growth of 12.5%. Gartner predicts that by 2025, some 75% of enterprise-generated data will be created and processed outside of the traditional data center or cloud. (Source)
New Report Details Water Infrastructure Cyber Vulnerabilities
Danny Jenkins, CEO and cofounder of the cybersecurity firm ThreatLocker, was terrified when he first heard the details behind a cyberattack on a Florida water treatment plant earlier this year. Officials said hackers exploited an outdated version of Windows in an apparent attempt to poison the water supply for a local community.
Jenkins, wasn’t just alarmed that hackers had successfully managed to gain remote access to the plant’s TeamViewer software to jack up levels of sodium hydroxide to a lethal dosage, but that a single operator could potentially tamper with the chemical levels — regardless of whether that person was a hacker or utility employee. (Source)
Senate Report Warns Federal Cybersecurity Defenses Not Strong enough to Protect American Data
Federal agencies responsible for safeguarding the security and personal data of millions of Americans have failed to implement basic defenses against cyberattacks, according to a report from Senate investigators released Tuesday. The agencies earned a C- report card for falling short of federally-mandated standards in the 47-page report by the Senate Homeland Security Committee. (Source)
BlackMatter and Haron Ransomware Groups Emerge after DarkSide and REvil Disappear
A new ransomware group launched into operation this week, claiming to combine the best features of the now-defunct Darkside and REvil ransomware groups. Named BlackMatter, the group is currently recruiting affiliates (collaborators) through ads posted on two cybercrime forums named Exploit and XSS.
According to security firm Recorded Future, BlackMatter claims the project “has incorporated in itself the best features of DarkSide, REvil, and LockBit.” In their blog, the threat actor group claims not to conduct attacks against organizations in several industries, including healthcare, critical infrastructure, oil and gas, defense, non-profit, and government. (Source)
