As discussed in Part 1, new cyber threats are constantly emerging with preparation being the key to strong cybersecurity. Part 2 will cover Vulnerable Cloud Platforms, Ransomware as a Service, and Fileless Attacks.

Vulnerable Cloud Platforms

If you ask a cybercriminal why he breached the cloud, he may say, “That is where the data is.” Using the cloud for data storage is becoming true for more and more companies every year. It is anticipated that more than 80% of the workloads of large and small businesses will be in the cloud by the end of 2020.
Despite the obvious risks, many companies aren’t adequately backing up the cloud data generated by solutions such as Dropbox and Office 365, which leaves them more vulnerable to malware.

Ransomware as a Service (RaaS)

A ransomware attack can cost larger businesses millions of dollars because of downtime, loss of sensitive data, and damaged reputation. Ironically, ransomware has been so successful that cybercriminals are now selling it as a service in 2020.
Similar to the legitimate business model of SaaS (software as a service), RaaS generates revenue for organizations selling ransomware code to cybercriminals. Although prevention is the best defense, a solid data backup and disaster recovery plan will minimize the damage that may be caused by ransomware.

Fileless Attacks

After jumping by 1,000% in 2018, Windows PowerShell attacks continue to grow in 2020. The popularity of this attack is attributed to the fact that its delivery system does not use a file that can be detected by anti-malware software. It carries out attacks by sending a malicious command into the Windows PowerShell process of a PC, letting an intruder breach the system.
As PowerShell is a Windows scripting language enabling users to automate and manage Windows and Windows Server systems, conventional defenses are unable to stop this kind of attack. Advanced threat protection is required.
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