Cyber Attacks Prevention Techniques

 What are Cyber Attacks?

Cyberattacks are the attempts that are put on by a hacker (anonymous personality) to intrude or have access to a system of more than one device or inside a network without the knowledge of the host. Basically, the hackers try to get unauthorized access to the system to destroy, disrupt and manipulate data within the system.

Why do Cyber attacks happen?

The people or groups involved in the creation of a cyberattack are known as cyber criminals. Usually, they do this for their benefit. Their main target has always been big businesses and tech hubs. They try to get access to the customer’s credit card details or other sensitive information by getting into the system and using their identity to steal goods and also for financial gains.

Types of Cyber Attacks

Mainly Cyberattacks are of 2 types. Those are Web Based attacks and System Based attacks.

Web-Based Attacks :

These attacks are those attacks that occur on a website or web application. There are further divisions in which we can classify web-based attacks. Those are as follows –

• Injection Attacks – These attacks are the ones in which the hackers try to insert untrusted inputs into the system which in turn results in retrieving every information on the system. Examples- SQL Injections, code injections, etc.

• DNS Spoofing –DNS spoofing is a technique that uses altered DNS records to route internet traffic to a bogus website that resembles the one to which it is being directed.

• Session Hijacking – This is an attack used by hackers through which they get control of the target Computer. It is basically a technique by which hackers take control of the user’s browsing session and gain access to their sensitive information including passwords.

• Phishing – These attacks are the ones in which the hacker tries to send a request to a user who looks like a reliable source and gets access to your personal data. These usually occur in emails, instant messages, etc.

• Brute Force – It is a hacking method that uses the trial method for logging into a website or application. It is a very simple attack yet it has the capability to gain unauthorized access to a device or network.

• Denial of Service – This method is used to shut down the machine or network which makes it inaccessible to the intended users. The hackers are able to do this by sending some information that triggers a crash.

• Dictionary Attacks – It is a method through which the hackers get into the password-protected system or network by entering every word of a dictionary as a password.

• URL Interpretation – When someone changes the URL in the browser's location bar to query a website, this is known as a URL interpretation attack.  

• Man in the Middle attack – A man-in-the-middle is when an anonymous person intervenes in communication between two people. Both of them have the misconception that they are speaking directly to each other.

What are System-Based Attacks?

System-Based attacks are a specific kind of harmful software that spread through computer files without the user's knowledge. The System-Based attacks can be further classified into the following –

• Virus – A computer virus is a form of malicious software that goes with another program. Moreover, viruses have the capability to clone themselves and spread to other devices.

• Worms – A worm is not a virus but it can severely destroy IT Operations and cause data loss. It is much more harmful than a virus because once it infects a vulnerable machine, it has the capability to self-replicate and spread automatically.

• Trojan Horse – Trojan Horse is also malicious software that imitates reliable software and codes.

• Backdoors – For getting unauthorized access over a network or system, a backdoor attack takes on around the network’s regular security shields.

• Bots – A bot attack is used to trick, obstruct, or otherwise interfere with a website, application, API, or end users by using automatic web requests.

Cyber Attack Prevention and Techniques

With the increase of digitalization in this rapidly growing modern era, strong cybersecurity solutions are the need of the hour. We know how individuals and organizations are facing cybersecurity risks every single day which are leading to losses that include most critical information, or loss of finances in some cases. Causing a hack in the system may lead to terrific difficulties, and in some cases, the organization may go out of business. Cyberattacks basically mean a deliberate attempt to sneak into someone’s system. By using the malicious code, cybercriminals get access to your computer's data and steal, leak, or hostage it. The rate of cybersecurity risks has increased in recent years which shows that it has an increase of around 125% through 2021 globally. Despite being much more developed and stable than other nations, the United Kingdom and Japan share the same issue. The main problem with organizations is that too little effort is being made to understand the value, control, and cost of the information that an organization holds. So both organizations and people should initiate cybersecurity practices. This article is being provided to you to help you become more knowledgeable about Cybersecurity issues and to help you combat cyberattacks.

Cyber Attack Prevention for Individuals

For an individual, the preventive measures that he/she must take are different from the business organizations. Tips to be safe from cyberattacks for individuals are listed below :

• The first thing you should do is limit the sharing of your personal information online as much as you can. You should regularly keep on changing your privacy settings.

• You should know to limit the use of location features as much as it can be done.

• The devices that you use should be up-to-date (Update software regularly). Have a look over your credit reports and account statements frequently.

• Create strong passwords. The use of upper case, lower case, numerals, and special characters constitutes a strong password. Also, try to use different passwords for every website and application that you use.

• Always use two-factor authentication. Manage social media settings attentively. Cybercriminals may find common information which is used as security questions such as your pet’s name from your social media posts. Set your social media account to private and avoid sharing sensitive information through posts and stories.

• When you work from your home, it’s better to use a VPN(Virtual Private Network). Basically, use VPN while you surf the internet when your device is connected to public wi-fi. VPN plays an important role in encrypting your IP address from hackers

• Educate children about proper usage of the Internet. Make them recognize the difference between legit and spam emails. Caution them from clicking any suspicious suspicious links or installation of any third-party application.

• Avoid letting strangers influence you to share private information online for the benefit of yours or theirs.

 Cyber Attack Prevention for business organizations

Similarly, in the case of business organizations, the tips to defend against Cyber threats are as follows:

• They should back up data regularly. Regular backing up of business data will help you recover every piece of information that you may lose in a cyberattack.

• Verify that your operating system and security software are updated naturally. Updates are required for the latest major security advancement. You may also get scheduled for updates at the most suitable times. Updates let you understand the most important security limitations in your system.

• Setting up firewalls will create a much more secure environment. Basically, firewalls are the software or hardware that comes in between the device and the internet. It acts as a security to every incoming and outgoing traffic. Mainly firewalls are set up to protect the internal networks of a business. Always keep your firewalls updated to defend against cyber threats.

• It is mandatory that you use robust security software. Invest in programs that are intended to stop ransomware.

• Make sure to encrypt all sensitive data, including employee and customer information.

Recently in late 2022s, Twitter’s data got breached which resulted in the loss of the contact information of millions of users. It was the first security issue of the Elon Musk era.