The Leading Cybersecurity Trends to Be Cognizant of in 2023

While there are several factors that will influence how business leaders strengthen their digital defenses in 2023, cybersecurity remains a top priority. Ransomware attacks are on the rise and the Zero Trust model is gaining popularity. And the ongoing conflict in Ukraine has made state-sponsored attacks more common than ever.

More and more businesses are using online technology to automate their operations, resulting in a wealth of data on the Internet. However, moving online comes with a number of Internet security risks, including data breaches and theft. This is common for small businesses, individuals, and large businesses alike. Over 90% of his data breaches in Q1 2022 were due to cyberattacks.

Security and risk management leaders are at an inflection point as organizations' digital footprints grow and centralized cybersecurity controls become ineffective. As such, the trend toward hybrid work and digital business operations in the cloud poses new threats. Meanwhile, advanced ransomware, cyberattacks on digital supply chains, and deep-rooted vulnerabilities are exposing technology gaps and a shortage of skilled talent to tackle the challenge.

Understanding key trends in the world of cybersecurity can help individuals navigate emerging threats and improve their roles. Let's find out what these trends are.

Ongoing Phishing

Phishing attacks are the most common security risk facing the IT industry, and many people are still tricked by phishing emails. Hackers are increasingly using sophisticated techniques to generate well-executed business email compromise attacks (BEC) and malicious URLs. Hackers increase their sophistication by initiating investigations.

At the same time, attackers are becoming more sophisticated. They begin researching potential victims to gather the information that increases the chances of a successful phishing attack while striving for targeted and effective attacks. The one method attackers use to test the email address and see who responds is a decoy attack.

According to a recent report, approximately 35% of the 10,500 companies surveyed were the target of at least one decoy attack in September 2021, with one of those messages resulting in an average of three different emails per company. Additionally, corporate attacks targeting infrastructure, transportation, financial services, and other organizations accounted for 57% of all ransomware attacks from August 2020 to July 2021.

Fortunately, filter technology has improved significantly. Emails are usually sent from trusted sources such as Gmail accounts and do not contain malicious payloads. For this reason, it is important to train employees to clearly identify attacks and not respond. AI defenses are much more effective. To defend against such attacks, information gathered from a variety of sources, including traffic graphs, reputation systems, and network-level analysis.

Digital Supply Chain Issues

A supply chain attack occurs when the products, services, or technologies that a vendor provides to its customers are hacked, posing a threat to its customer base. This can take the form of unauthorized use of vendor email accounts for social engineering purposes or to increase the likelihood of malware infections. A more sophisticated attack could leverage privileged access to the provider's network to compromise the target's network.

One such example is the software provider SolarWinds. The company learned of the Supply Chain attack on one of its software systems in late December. The attacker modified a signed version of the vendor's software with malware, which he used to infect 18,000 private companies and government agencies. Once installed in the target environment, the virus spreads through larger attack vectors.

According to Gartner, by 2025, three times as many companies as in 2021 could be exposed to attacks on their software supply chains. Prioritizing risks in the digital supply chain and pressuring suppliers to demonstrate security best practices, security and risk management experts should work with other departments used to infect 18,000 private companies and government agencies.

Cybersecurity Mesh and Distributed Approach

Whether assets are on-premises, in the data center, or in the cloud, distributed enterprises deploy and integrate security using a cybersecurity mesh methodology, a modern conceptual approach to security architecture. By implementing a cybersecurity mesh architecture, organizations can minimize the cost-effectiveness of individual security events by an average of 90% over the next few years.

This concept becomes even more important as more and more companies move their operations to cloud infrastructures and multi-cloud environments. A cybersecurity network is structurally composed of multiple layers of security controls that work together to protect an organization from various threats such as malware, viruses, and phishing attacks. Theoretically, the more layers of mesh, the more IT security, and protection against cyber threats it can provide.

Cybersecurity networks are typically built using a combination of several different technologies, including on-premises firewalls, cloud-based security services, and externally managed security service providers. To cover every part of the company, these solutions can be utilized in concert with one another. Unlike traditional point solutions, the goal is to provide continuous traffic visibility across the network and provide superior protection.

It's important to remember that human error is still involved in most data breaches. This proves that traditional methods of security awareness training are still inadequate. With the right budget, modern organizations must move away from traditional compliance-based awareness efforts in favor of broader behavioral and cultural change initiatives that promote safer work practices.