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[Video] What Is Ransomware?

What is ransomware

What Is Ransomware: 5 Tips To Protect Your Business

Ransomware can damage and take a heavy financial toll on your business. What is ransomware and 5 tips you can take to protect your business today?  

 

For businesses and organizations of all types, the Internet represents great promise and risk, with risk in the form of cyberattacks. Of the different kinds of cyber attacks, ransomware, in particular, can be very damaging exacting a heavy financial toll on you and your business.

What is ransomware?

Ransomware is a type of malicious software designed to block access to your system until a ransom is paid. The reason they are dangerous and damaging is that even if you pay, there is no guarantee that you will get your system back. There are many stories of organizations paying their ransom, receiving nothing in return, and dealing with the loss of their data.

What happens in a ransomware attack?

In a ransomware attack, hackers gain access to your system through a malicious link or vulnerability attacking your network and backup files. Their mission is to render your back up files and folders useless so that you cannot gain access to your system files. Once incapacitated, the hackers contact you demanding a ransom, often in the form of cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin, believing that they are protected behind a shield of anonymity.

What types of organizations are targeted?

One would think that the organizations most vulnerable to a ransomware attack are small to medium-sized. The truth is that any organization that is not taking its cybersecurity seriously is at risk of a ransomware attack. Cybersecurity, for many, is often an afterthought until it happens to them. This includes businesses, non-profits, and government agencies of all sizes.

How can I protect my business from ransomware attacks?

While there are things you can do to minimize the chance that you will be a victim of a ransomware attack, the risk cannot be entirely eliminated. However, there are steps you can take to minimize the risk of an attack. If ever you needed a reason to take action, consider that ransomware prevention is a fraction of the cost to recover from a ransomware attack. Never mind the financial cost. Consider that for most businesses, their IT system is the brains and nerve center of their operation storing customer lists, financial information, and everything else.

Some of the things that you can do to prepare for a ransomware attack include:

Having a business continuity plan

A business continuity plan consists of daily backups of all of your data, both locally, and to the cloud.

Invest in the best tools and equipment

You don’t want to cut corners when it comes to your cybersecurity. For that reason, you want to invest in the best tools and equipment. This includes anti-virus software, anti-malware, DNS filtering, and very strong firewalls.

Never click an unknown without knowing the sender

The average office worker receives 121 emails per day. As a result, it is easy to see how you or an employee can overlook a malicious email. While most people would click a link or download a file without a second thought, never open an attachment or click a link without verifying the authenticity of the sender. If you have any reservations about an email or sender, delete the email.

Keep up on your training

Cybersecurity is evolving quickly. Unfortunately, so are the hackers. As a result, you and your staff need to keep on top of your cybersecurity awareness training to stay ahead of the curve.

Work with a competent IT company

Make sure that your IT services company knows what they are doing. Many companies are marketing themselves as cybersecurity experts. As a result, you need to do your research to assess their cybersecurity skills.

There are more things that you can be doing to protect yourself from ransomware attacks. However, this is a good start for what you can do today. The other thing is to contact us to discuss a personalized ransomware prevention program for your business.

What is ransomware

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[VIDEO] COVID-19 (Corona Virus): Business Continuity Plan Ready?

COVID-19 Business Continuity

Coronavirus Spreading: Make Sure Your Business Continuity Plan Is Ready

The spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus) has taken root across the country. More and more locations are starting to report cases and this number continues to raise alarm bells throughout the medical profession, and unsurprisingly, across businesses everywhere.

Business Continuity During Crisis

In the video above, We shared with you the importance of making sure your business continuity strategies are in place and ready to go. Many of the largest global enterprises to local small businesses have begun to exercise and test business continuity strategies in the event that their offices and factories are shut down due to the spread of this virus – forcing staff members to work remotely to keep the business functioning.

Are you prepared in the event that your employees need to stay home due to quarantine or a similar occurrence? If not, we urge you to reach out to us to talk about setting up:

  1. Remote access solutions that let your team work from home with access to data, applications, and systems.
  2. Communication solutions that enable anytime, anywhere communication via the internet from any device or location.
  3. Cybersecurity solutions for office and home computers that keep you safe against cybercriminals leveraging this major headline as a mechanism of social engineering.
  4. Emergency procedures that outline how to recover equipment, emergency contact information for employees, and more.
  5. Virtual private network (VPN) technology to ensure your employees are using a secure, encrypted connection at home to access corporate information.

Systems MUST be in place for employees working from home as they’re using their own computers to access corporate resources. It’s up to you to make sure those computers are clean from viruses or other security issues.

Our team is more than familiar with creating proven contingency plans for situations like this. You don’t have to handle this difficult situation alone. We can help you get prepared and make sure your employees are accessing corporate information in a safe and secure manner.

Reach out to us right away over the phone, by email or by visiting our website.

COVID-19 Business Continuity

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Know the Digital Threats: 6 Dangerous Malware & How to Stop Them

Malware Threats Business

Know and Protect Your Network From These Malware Threats

Every day, new malware is discovered that threatens U.S. business and individual security. Continue reading to learn about six of the most recent named and dangerous malware threats.  

Back in 2018, U.S. Cyber Command was restructured to become an officially unified combatant command–meaning that it now acts as its unit organized under its commander who reports directly to the Defense Secretary. This critical change became necessary following an increasing amount of sophisticated cyber attacks. Hackers are constantly evolving, constantly upping the ante, and the U.S. Cyber Command is now one of our frontline defenses against those attacks. One way they have assisted the entire country is by diagnosing and alerting the general public of new malware. This is critical information that every business owner and the tech-savvy individual should keep up-to-date on to protect their assets and data.

Malware Threats Business

Know Digital Threats: 6 Dangerous Malware & How to Stop Them

The Basics of Malware

The word malware is a mash-up of malicious software. It is thereby defined as any software that is malevolently used to steal data, compromise computer functionalities, bypass admin controls, or otherwise cause an issue with another person or organization’s computer. As you might expect, malware is a broad umbrella term that encompasses different types of attacks, such as viruses, adware, and Trojan horses.

The 6 New Dangerous Malware Named by the U.S. Cyber Company

There are always new types of malware being created and deployed by malevolent forces. The six new dangerous types of malware announced by the U.S. Cyber Company are ones discovered to have been used by a government-backed North Korean hacking group. These six types of malware have been unleashed against various U.S. targets, but it is yet unknown the scale of those attacks, or all who were targeted. This is why all businesses and professionals need to keep abreast of the latest digital security news.,

The six new dangerous malware named were as follows:

  • Bistromath. This is a variety of trojan horse that features full remote access to allow the hacker to perform file uploads and downloads, system surveys, process and command executions, and, very worryingly, monitor microphones, screens, and clipboards.
  • Slickshoes. This is a form of dropper malware that can load information onto a computer but cannot execute.
  • Hotcroissant. This is a full-featured becoming implant that, once it finds its way into a host computer network, will perform many of the same functions as the Bistromath.
  • Artfulpie. This is another implant malware that will download into a host network and then load its memory to execute dangerous DLL files.
  • Buttetline. Another implant, this one utilizes a faux HTTPS scheme that makes it incredibly hard for many malware-detection security systems to detect.
  • Crowdedflouder. This type of malware executes via Windows to unpack and enable a remote access trojan within the computer’s memory system.

Essential Tips for Preventing Malware Infection From Impacting You & Your Business

The hackers may be getting more sophisticated every year, but so are the good guys. Your browsers, plugins, applications, and software all have teams of tech gurus working on them to make them safer and more resilient to outside attacks continually. The following is a look at a few tips and ways to leverage those assets and be smart to prevent a malware infection:

  • Update all of your browsers, operating system, plugins, applications regularly, and whenever prompted. Ask for a schedule by your tech team if applicable.
  • Never click on any email links or download attachments from unknown or untrusted sources. If you manage a business, make this a company-wide policy. Be wary of any phishing emails from firms you might otherwise trust (such as your financial institution). Always use a separate tab to log into such sources.
  • Practice creating strong passwords and change them at least once every four months.

Contact Our Team for More Information

Subscribe to our blog to stay up-to-date on the latest tech and digital security news and contact us if you have any questions about staying safe from malware.

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Use SharePoint to Keep Business Data Organized

Sharepoint Metadata

Metadata Gives You Control of Disorganized Online Filing Systems

SharePoint gives you a simple solution to keep your online files organized, using metadata to create customized ways to sort and find the information you need.

It’s an all-too-common occurrence. You need to send a business file to a colleague or client. You hesitantly open your file manager window and shudder. Soon, you’re navigating through generations of file folder structures, organizational schemes, and naming conventions that have long been abandoned. An hour later, having spent far too long hunting for the file in question, you find the desired info and can attach it to your email.

Keeping business information organized is not easy. Files, folders, names, and systems come and go, often discarded in a digital graveyard.

Fortunately, there’s a standard Microsoft tool to help you keep information organized.

Sharepoint Metadata

Can I Use SharePoint to Organize Data?

SharePoint is a popular app included in Office 365 and other enterprise versions of the popular productivity suite. In SharePoint, which is essentially a digital document library, you can file documents, create folders, and share with internal and external teammates. It also can use key organizing features to help reduce the chaos in your filing.

The key is metadata. Nearly every file you use has metadata associated with it. Think about some of the common attributes you know about files — file name, creation date, file size, and file type are just a few.

Whenever you change the name of a file, for example, you change its metadata.

The beauty with SharePoint is that you can easily create new metadata categories and use tools to add details. Once the details are entered, you can search and filter on the new metadata to quickly find what you need.

How Can I Use SharePoint Metadata to Organize Work Files?

Here is a step-by-step guide to using SharePoint metadata for file organization. For the purposes of this example, let’s pretend we’re trying to organize social media messages for a marketing campaign. We are going to launch the campaign on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and use video, text, and image files.

Step 1: Find the Files

Start by navigating within SharePoint to the library or document list that contains the files you want to organize. Be sure that you are the site owner to access the tools that allow for customized metadata.

Step 2: Build the Categories

Each new category of metadata will become another column within the document list. Select “Add Column” and give it a name. In our example, our first new column will be “Platform.”

When you create a new column, you can select its type. Among the options are Single line of text, Multiple lines of text, Number, Yes/No, Person, Date, Choice, Hyperlink, and Picture. For our example, we’d probably select Choice and add in the social media platforms.

We can add a second new column for “Media Type” and again choose Choice and enter in Video, Text, and Image as options. If we wanted, we could add a third new column, call it “Completed” and make it a Yes/No type.

Step 3: Apply the Metadata

In our list of social media posts, we can now apply new metadata tags for Platform, Media Type, and Completed. SharePoint has a great feature called Quick Edit that lets you apply metadata to all the documents in a list. You can run through each library option and apply, for example, which items are video entries, which are for Facebook and which are still in progress.

While it can be a bit tedious to go through an existing list of documents, in the long run, the work will pay off handsomely.

Step 4: Filter to Find

The metadata tags allow you to filter on any of the columns (just like a click on the Name column can give you an alphabetized list). Want to see what creatives are ready for each platform? Click on that column heading to see a sortable list. The same goes for looking at posts by type or completion status.

SharePoint is a powerful way to keep your documents organized and searchable in different ways.

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Is Your IT Company Doing These Bad Cybersecurity Practices?

Managed Services Security Issues

Watch Out for These Bad Cybersecurity Practices in Your MSP

How good is your MSP at providing security for your business? Watch out for these potentially harmful cybersecurity practices in your managed service provider.   

Managed Services Security Issues

In a recent speech, Kyle Ardoin, the Louisiana Secretary of State, railed against managed service providers in the state for not doing enough to prevent cybercrimes such as ransomware attacks.

Like many other states in the Union, Louisiana has been walloped with such crimes. Numerous government offices and school districts have been affected, as have businesses and organizations in a breadth of industries. Ardoin stressed the fact that times are certainly changing where cybersecurity is concerned, and new types of crimes pop up every day. Still, he said, MSPs are the main party to blame, and he listed several bad MSP practices that have ultimately led to the recent rash of hacks and data breaches.

Whether you own a small business, manage a large enterprise, or work in a government office, it’s vital that your managed service provider not be doing any of these practices. As Ardoin appropriately stressed, “As attacks grow more sophisticated, many MSPs have not been upfront with their clients about the need to invest more in security. This leads to serious problems for their clients, and the MSPs themselves.”

Think about the managed service provider that you are currently working with. If they are doing any of the following, speak to them about remedying the issue, or seriously consider looking for a new MSP to work with.

What Are the Top Bad Practices MSPs Do?

1. Using outdated technology

While system patching, firewalls, and antivirus software were enough to protect most businesses in the past, today, these preventive measures simply don’t cut it. Newer, better solutions are out there.

2. Not implementing enough authentication features

Password and credential leaks are the number one way that hackers infiltrate systems. Ensure your MSP is enforcing two-step authentication and password-free authentication (biometric verifications, such as face recognition or fingerprinting) wherever possible.

3. Not staying up-to-date on the latest types of attacks

MSPs need to keep current with the increasingly sophisticated attacks that hackers are fighting with. Their techniques and goals are ever-changing, and it’s not up to you, the client, to know how these criminals are attempting to infiltrate your systems. That’s what you pay your MSP to do.

4. Not providing security training for your employees

Again, employee password and credential hacking is a top way that hackers infiltrate their targets. Likewise, phishing scams are another type of attack that directly affects employees. For this reason, it only makes sense that much of your cybersecurity plan needs to include training your employees. This is a service that your MSP should provide.

5. Not being upfront with you about cybersecurity dangers

It’s not uncommon for an MSP to understand the threats to their clients (you), but to be afraid or timid about asking you to invest more in your protection. This shouldn’t be a factor in their service. Instead, they must be upfront with you about the threats you’re up against and what you must do together to prevent a breach.

Should You Consider Working With an MSSP Over an MSP?

Ardoin was serious about the problems plaguing current MSP practices around Louisiana and the rest of the country. His solution was to recommend that more businesses, organizations, and government offices turn to MSSPs over MSPs.

The core difference between the two is that MSSPs are primarily focused on security instead of being an overarching provider of all things IT as MSPs are. MSSP stands for managed security service provider while MSP stands only for managed service provider.

If you are unhappy with your current managed services, speak with your MSP about the issue, or begin looking for either an MSSP or another MSP who will be better equipped to handle the cybersecurity challenges of today.

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7 Myths Small Businesses Still Believe About PC Technology

Slow Computers

The 7 PC Myths Draining Your Business Technology Budget

Evaluating your business technology budget? These 7 PC myths could be costing you a lot of money. From slow computers to hacker vulnerability, see how to fix it.  

Slow Computers

Think you’re saving money by keeping those old PCs running in the office? Think again. An Intel study found that using a business PC that’s older than five years costs the business nearly $700 a year in repair and maintenance costs alone. What other costly PC myths are draining your technology budget?

Myth #1: A Slow Computer Has a Virus

Slow computers are productivity killers. If you have slow PCs, studies show that the average employee loses 40 min/day due to downtime.

That’s on top of 29% reduced productivity due to slower processing.

For many years, office workers have proclaimed, “it’s got a virus”. But the truth is there are many reasons that computers slow down over time. And your technology solutions partner will have many troubleshooting techniques in their tool belt to speed up slow work stations.

So if the virus scanner turns up nothing, know that you have options. Here are just a few things you can try:

  • Clearing caches and history
  • Rebooting if you haven’t rebooted for a few days
  • Closing programs and re-opening (not a good long-term solution)
  • Reducing the number of start-up programs
  • Checking for conflicting malware protectors

Myth #2: Macs Don’t Get Viruses

Who knows where this one started? Probably Apple or Apple enthusiasts trying to get a foothold in the business computer market. Truth, Macs are just as susceptible to malware. Whether you’re a Mac business or a PC business, you need a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy.

Myth #3: Letting Your Battery Run Down Before Charging to Extend Battery Life

This was true on older devices. Leaving a laptop docked on a charger would kill the battery life.

But if you have business laptops, tablets and phones that are less than five years old, this is no longer the case. Devices with lithium-ion batteries do not suffer this fate. On top of that, Microsoft, Apple and Android now use machine learning to track your charging habits and avoid straining the battery.

Myth #4: Our Business Is Too Small to Be Targeted by Hackers

Actually, over 50% of cyberattacks happen to small businesses. They’re often less prepared. And they may be complacent, thinking what are the chances they’d attack us?

Most cyber attackers don’t go for the big score. Instead, it’s more efficient to go for the least protected. Attacking 10 poorly protected small businesses versus one better protected medium-sized business will yield a higher ROI for the hackers.

That’s smart business!

Myth #5: Consumer PCs and Business PCs Are Interchangeable

This is especially untrue now. With so many people doing most of their computing on their phones, home computers haven’t needed to advance much beyond the technology of 10-15 years ago.

Instead, manufacturers have focused on the business market, where businesses demand faster processing and greater capabilities. For this reason, the fact is, if you’re buying PCs for business, make sure they can handle business computing.

Myth #6: RAM Is All That Matters

RAM, random access memory, is important for speed. More RAM means less buffering (traffic jams). But a computer is a lot more than RAM. It has an advanced CPU (processor) that uses that RAM most efficiently.

Otherwise, your computer is just a lot of muscle without the brains to use that muscle wisely.

Myth #7: No Need to Replace Computers that Still Work

We already mentioned how much time employees waste on slow computers. That payroll waste and downtime isn’t the only thing you need to worry about when trying to use computers beyond their shelf life of up to five years.

Older computers are also more susceptible to viruses. Eventually, they can’t support current operating systems. Microsoft stops supporting older OS after a while, leaving them open to attacks.

Newer operating systems often also have better productivity tools that streamline business operations. And they’ll work more effectively with new programs you want to install. A technology solutions professional can help you weigh the cost-benefits of getting new PCs.

And for more business technology management tips, follow our blog.

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Bolster Cybersecurity Readiness with Strategic Investments

Cybersecurity Defenses

Bolster Cybersecurity Readiness with Strategic Investments

Protecting your organization from cybercriminals is gaining complexity and requiring more resources than ever before. Do your leaders understand the implications of a lack of cybersecurity funding?  

Every day, your organization’s digital assets are under attack from cyber criminals around the world. Many of these individuals will never even know the name of your corporation — they are simply attacking at random and hoping that their wide net will haul in big treasure. Other hackers are laser-focused on bringing down your company, looking up unique details about your officers on LinkedIn and other social media platforms while testing the waters with small breaches to determine access available access levels. Safeguarding your innovation and valuable customer data may come down to your organization’s ability to strategically invest in the right cybersecurity tools . . . and gaining the support of knowledgeable individuals that are continually enhancing their knowledge of security procedures. See how these strategic investments in the future may be all that stands between your business and the devastation that can occur during and after a cyberattack.

Cybersecurity Defenses

Helping Executives Navigate the Cybersecurity Landscape

Perhaps one of the largest challenges facing IT leaders is helping executives across the organization understand the dangers inherent with a lack of cybersecurity without requiring deep levels of technical knowledge. When technical professionals become passionate about a particular topic, bringing the focus back to the business impact can be difficult. Creating a direct correlation between specific cybersecurity incidents and corporate results provides a method of framing the conversation that helps ensure IT receives the necessary funding for strategic investments in cybersecurity. Helping translate the results of cybersecurity spending into real terms allows this type of project to be weighed objectively against other strategic initiatives under consideration for the same budget dollars.

Aligning Resource Allocation with Cybersecurity Realities

How many individuals do you have focused solely on cybersecurity within your organization? One? Ten? None? Whatever the number, it is unlikely to be enough to handle the response needed in the event of an attack. Even an all-hands-on-deck effort by all your technicians and engineers will require scaling up and education before these individuals can be effective at staving off the aftereffects of a massive attack. Working with IT managed services providers to create a holistic approach to cybersecurity not only provides access to advanced tools but also offers a more expansive skill set in terms of cybersecurity. Making an early investment in prevention includes everything from active monitoring to web-based content filtering, all activities aimed at reducing the possibility of an attack — and limiting the negative impact to your organization in the event of an incident. When you align internal resources around managing external cybersecurity assets as opposed to attempting to build that internal infrastructure, you are gaining flexibility and scalability that would be extremely difficult to grow organically in an affordable fashion.

Creating a Culture of Cybersecurity Awareness

As you’re sharing this information with senior leadership, one important topic to consider is how to create a culture of cybersecurity awareness. Each time your employees open an email, navigate to a website or fill out a form online is a potential danger to your organization, but are staff aware of the risks they are taking on a daily basis? A strategic investment in training and ongoing education could be the detail that stops a wayward employee from inadvertently providing information to hackers, allowing them to infiltrate your cybersecurity net. A recent study by The Aberdeen Group found that you can reduce the risk of socially engineered cyber threats by up to 70% when you launch an aggressive cybersecurity awareness training that includes a component of ongoing education.

Investing in cybersecurity protection requires an ongoing commitment from senior leadership and a firm focus on the benefits of this investment from technology directors without bogging executives down with the technical details of individual tactics. From advanced cybersecurity tools to active defense and training solutions, finding partners that are able to provide cohesive strategies to protect your organization is going to be an integral component of your success in the security realm.

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These Phishing Headlines End Up Fooling The Smartest IT Professionals. 

Modern Phishing Email and Article Headlines That Even Fool Savvy Tech Professionals

Learn more about the kind of email phishing headlines that end up fooling the smartest tech professionals, and how you can better protect your business.  

Phishing Headlines

Any tech professional worth their salt understands the damage wrought by unsuspecting users clicking on links inside “phishing” emails. It’s not surprising when tech-challenged individuals end up getting sucked in by today’s social engineering attempts. However, some of the headlines used by hackers manage to fool a lot of experienced IT pros.

Emails aren’t the only place where tech professionals show their vulnerability. Messaging portals in spaces like Facebook and LinkedIn have become prime targets for scammers, especially as traditional email providers step up their protections. In fact, both platforms had the highest success rate for phishing scams when they were included in an email subject line at 28 percent and 55 percent, respectively.

How Do Experienced Tech Professionals End Up Getting Fooled?

It’s hard to imagine how the people charged with keeping company systems safe end up ensnared in these schemes. Security-minded individuals become so comfortable in their knowledge of suspicious emails and technology in general that it makes them less careful. They’re prone to quickly scanning and clicking emails and messages without absorbing the information. It’s already too late by the time they realize their error in judgment.

What Makes a Phishing Headline Successful?

Phishing email headers that include words like “Request,” “Follow-Up,” and “Urgent/Important” tend to have a higher click rate, especially if it seems they come from a colleague or high-level executive. Victims often feel compelled to respond quickly out of fear of not delivering on job expectations. They also worry about costing the company money by failing to follow through on requests related to finance and payments.

The manipulation of that social element can have the same effect on tech workers. They’re more likely to respond quickly to a request that seems to come from a company vice-president. No one wants to be the person preventing them from getting back to company business.

Let’s look at some of the headlines used to fool regular users and IT professionals.

  1. Requests for password changes
  2. Deactivation of Microsoft Office email service
  3. Setting up employee raises for HR
  4. Document sharing using a secure server
  5. Lack of internet service due to scheduled server maintenance.
  6. Address needed for FedEx delivery
  7. Locked company twitter account
  8. Complete steps for Google service
  9. Error with Coinbase
  10. Closed company bank account

How Can Businesses Upgrade Their Current Phishing Protections?

There’s no one step a business can take to prevent someone from falling for a phishing scam. It pays to use a multi-pronged approach to blocking and dealing with suspicious emails and websites targeting company workers.

Tools like SPAM filters, mock phishing practice scenarios, and web filters to block malicious websites should be a priority. It also pays to encrypt sensitive company information, making it harder for employees to share the data with anyone. That goes double for telecommuters who must log into company systems remotely from different devices.

Businesses should initiate company-wide security initiatives and enforce them consistently. Make sure IT employees understand that their knowledge doesn’t leave them immune to these types of attacks.

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Hackers Increasingly Targeting Business Conversations

Conversation Jacking

‘Conversation hijacking’ Seeks Sensitive Business Intelligence

Your employees probably know not to open unexpected file attachments or click on random links, but what if an attachment arrives as part of an email conversation with trusted colleagues?

Sophisticated hackers are using a technique known as “conversation hijacking” to insert themselves into business operations, gain insight into sensitive details, and exploit the information for financial gain. What should you know about this insidious form of cyberattack on businesses?

Conversation Jacking

Conversation Hijacking: Infiltrating Business Communications

New research indicates that the incidence of conversation hijacking increased by more than 400 percent in the second half of 2019 alone.

In a conversation hijacking attack, a hacker uses various methods for gaining access to business credentials — for instance, an email login. By using the phished information, the hacker then may join an existing email conversation by posing as someone already involved in the conversation.

Conversation hijacking attacks are mounted by hackers willing to invest significant time to gain access to sensitive information. The hacker may read through numerous emails and conduct research online to learn about business deals in progress or other potentially valuable information.

By gaining the trust of other people in the email thread, the hacker then can use a variety of techniques for gaining access to banking information and financial assets.

Forms of Conversation Hijacking

Conversation hijacking can take a number of different forms, with information coming from a range of different sources. Hackers may compromise email accounts through phishing or data breaches and use the stolen account information to stage account-takeover attacks.

A hacker then may spend time monitoring an email account — including ongoing message threads — to gain information about sensitive business details or financial arrangements. An attack may involve a hacker creating a fake domain similar to the real domains used by a company. In the case of domain impersonation, the goal is to create a domain similar enough to the real domain that unsuspecting employees click or download files without realizing the error.

Hackers also may impersonate the domain of a client, vendor or business partner to gain the trust of employees for the ultimate purpose of accessing financial accounts and information.

Protecting Your Business

Conversation hijacking can be more difficult to detect than other types of hacking, but you can take steps to protect your business, your employees and your clients and partners.

The most important step you can take is ensuring that your team members understand how conversation hijacking attacks work. They should always use caution when downloading files or clicking on links and take time to ensure that all information — including domain names — matches their expectations.

In addition, any requests for financial information or immediate payment should raise red flags and should be reported to your company’s accounting department. If an employee doubts the authenticity of an email, they can contact the sender by phone or by starting a new email thread with an email address known to be accurate. Employees also should report to your IT team any email conversations or other incidents that seem suspicious.

Additional security measures — including robust email filtering and inbox rules — also can help, and restricting macros within documents can limit the means for hackers to gain access to account information. Multi-factor authentication also can provide extra protection against sophisticated conversation hijacking attacks.