What Are Cyber Attacks? 5 Types of Cyber Attacks

What Are Cyber Attacks? 5 Types of Cyber Attacks You Should Be Aware Of.

Cyber-attacks are malicious and offensive manoeuvres that are directed at computer operating systems or network infrastructures of individuals as well as organisations. These actions are generally meant for disrupting, destroying, disabling or controlling a computing infrastructure or for stealing confidential data. In the modern era of rapid digitalisation, most organisations use automated network infrastructures to store, share and manage sensitive data.

Thus, a security breach or unintended disclosure of this data can be essentially disastrous. The threat of cyber-attacks is not confined to large organisations and is equally troublesome for individuals. Nowadays, we often undertake multiple financial transactions across online platforms which require us to share sensitive financial information. This information, if leaked, can used for various malicious purposes.

Thus, to avoid falling prey to such malicious intentions of the cyber attackers. You must have a basic understanding of some common forms of cyber-attacks. How they impact you and how you may avoid them. Here, we bring you a comprehensive discussion about some commonly encountered cyber-attacks.

Cyber-attacks in the world

Global studies revealed that with remote work becoming the new norm across various organisations in the world. The rate of cybercrime is set to increase substantially. These remote workers expected to constitute the biggest group of individuals vulnerable to cybersecurity breaches and other malicious activities in cyberspace. In 2021, cyberattacks across the world have led to data breaches, impacting nearly 22 billion personal records. Moreover, 95% of cyberattacks caused by human error and are inherently avoidable. Thus, there exists a pressing need for enhancing the understanding of cyberattacks in the world population.

Cyberattacks in Australia

Australia’s defence readiness has long actively deliberated among the government platforms and agencies. However, as indicated by the recent cyber-attack news in the country. There is a pressing need for the inclusion of a cyber defence strategy into the country’s national defence infrastructure. Every day, according to the Australian Cyber Security Centre. Approximately 164 reports of cyber-attacks in Australia encountered. Amounting to one malicious cyberspace activity per 10 minutes. About a month ago, thousands of Deakin University students were victims of a cyber-attack. Here, the hackers gained access to their contact details by breaching the security infrastructure of the university website. Such incidents are becoming increasingly common across Australia and New Zealand. They are impacting the overall economic performance of both countries.

5 common types of cyberattacks to be aware of

Cyber-attacks are inherently complex and intricate patterns of malicious behaviour. Which may disrupt or deter organisational and individual functions in various ways. Some of the most commonly encountered variants of cyber-attacks include malware, phishing, denial-of-service attacks, man-in-the-middle attacks and SQL injections.

Malware

The category of software designed to destroy or damage computer systems or networks is commonly identified as Malware or malicious software. These programmes often penetrate a network rather seamlessly and may have a multifaceted impact on the computer system. There are numerous types of malware such as Viruses, worms, trojans, ransomware and many more. Viruses usually transmitted among multiple by disguising themselves as hidden file attachments.

Trojans are software that disguises themselves as useful programmes, which if downloaded can cause data breaches. A ransomware attack is a more serious cyber security threat where the offenders obtain sensitive information. And use it to blackmail the owner of the data to fulfil their financial interests. To avoid malware attacks, we advise you to install a robust cybersecurity system that regularly scans your system and network. And detects and neutralizes malicious activities. Thus, make sure you regularly upgrade and update your anti-malware applications to safely continue using online services.

Phishing attacks

A phishing attack refers to a form of malicious practice in which fraudulent communication is undertaken while disguising oneself as a reputable source. You often receive text messages and emails from seemingly reputable and reliable sources, asking you to share confidential details such as financial information, your address or your current location.

Phishing attacks usually intended to steal sensitive data or install malware into your individual or organisational network. It is one of the most commonly encountered forms of cyber-attack and found to endanger millions of unsuspecting individuals. Remember the Deakin University incident we mentioned before? It is a good example of a phishing attack where the hacker managed to disguise themselves as the university authority and ask thousands of students to share their confidential information.

The most effective way of avoiding a phishing attack is by educating users. If you ever receive a message or email asking you to share sensitive data, know that it might be an attempted phishing attack. Know that government agencies or organisations do not generally ask their clients to share this type of information. So, the next time you receive a similar email or message, avoid addressing the same and promptly report it to the authorities.

Distributed Denial-of-service attacks

Distributed-Denial-of-service, or DDoS, attacks sophisticated cybersecurity threats which are designed to flood a network with traffic to exhaust network resources and disrupt genuine network activity. A DDoS can significantly degrade network performance or cause a complete outage of the networking infrastructure.

Following the rapid digitalisation of commercial activity in Australia, a profound spike in DDoS attacks was observed. DDoS attacks on government networks can disrupt communications and other essential services. It can also significantly impact brand reputation and cause significant financial losses. In some cases, DDoS can mimic ransomware attacks and be used for accruing financial gains by extortion.

These attacks most commonly impact companies with a profound online presence such as e-commerce platforms, online gaming services, cloud service providers and others. Their overwhelming dependence on the uninterrupted availability of internet services makes these organisations increasingly vulnerable to DDoS attacks. Many cybersecurity organisations now provide comprehensive DDoS protection services in the form of holistic IT security systems to protect your company network from such massively adverse attacks.

Man-in-the-middle attacks

 A Man-in-the-middle attack is a special type of cyber security threat which enable a hacker or an offender to eavesdrop on the information being conveyed through a network. In this type of cyber-attack, the attacker is essentially spying on the users who are sharing the data. It might lead to the breach of exceptionally sensitive information as the users will be unaware of any third-party interference in their communication. A MITM attack can leave the users using the confidential network increasingly vulnerable to unwanted and illicit modification of the messages being conveyed.

For an organisational setup, it can lead to the summary failure of the company’s internal communication system. Moreover, for individuals, MITM attacks can lead to unwarranted access to sensitive personal information which may act as a significant physical and financial threat to the individual. The most common way you canexposed to a MITM attack is by logging in to an unsecured Wi-Fi network. It allows the attacker to sneak into your communication system and obtain direct access to confidential information.

Another way of implementing a MITM attack is installing malware on the user system or network. In either case, user discretion is key to avoiding MITM attacks. Avoid logging in on insecure Wi-Fi networks or clicking on suspicious links. Only then can you keep your confidential data safe.

SQL injections

Structured Query Language injections are a common cyber-attack strategy which selectively targets websites that operate with the help of online databases. Their clients are essentially computers which store information on a shared and common data storage network. The primary threat of SQL injection attacks is that the attacker can launch this attack by simply entering a suitable code in a data plane where the user usually enters something else.

For instance, in a data field where the users usually enter login IDs or passwords, an attacker may insert an SQL entry which will enable them to access the sensitive information as and when the user enters something into the targeted data field. SQL attacks may also give an attacker administrative access to the network which might prevent the original user from gaining necessary access to the vital services. Back in 2009, SQL injection attacks identified as the cause of widespread data breaches and other cyber-attacks in Australia.

Even today, the impact of SQL injection attacks, mainly due to the ease of implementation of such attacks, is equally disastrous. A cybersecurity expert can detect and defend a network against an SQL injection attack by implementing additional input authentication measures which will prevent the hacker from entering malicious code into the data field.

Thus, to conclude, cyber-attacks are a common occurrence in Australia and also worldwide. Every day, millions of people fall prey to this type of malicious behavior and suffer from substantial threats to their financial and individual security. Therefore, beware of any suspicious online activity and ensure that you have implemented the necessary measures for protecting your individual and organizational networking infrastructure. Follow up marketguest.com to update the latest articles.