Halloween: how cybercriminals exploit your fears

According to ANSSI data, the month with the most cyberattacks in 2022 in France is October.

In fact, 40% of ramsomware attacks received in 2022 by ANSSI were recorded in the month of October.

This is due to two factors :

1. It’s one of the busiest times of the year for companies, as they prepare for year-end tasks.
2. The holidays bring their share of cybercriminals, and this is the time when people are least vigilant and most likely to click on malicious links or attachments.

During Halloween, Phishing attacks are like witches: they can bewitch you and steal your data

According to an official report by the French government, 6 out of 10 information system vulnerabilities are caused by Phishing.

A phishing attack is a fraud attempt to obtain personal or sensitive information from a victim, such as login details, credit card numbers, or banking information.

Cybercriminals send a fraudulent email or text message that appears to come from a legitimate source, such as a bank or business.

The email or text message often contains a malicious link or attachment that, when clicked, infects the victim’s computer with malware.

As each holiday approaches, this type of attack proliferates, and especially by email.

Here are a few tips :

1. Always check the sender’s email address, and especially the domain name. Most of the time, it is not linked to the company contacting you (e.g an email followed by DPD parcels with sender email address: trackdpd@example123.com).
2. Do not click on links or open attachments from suspicious emails or from an unknown recipient.
3. Go directly through the sender’s website and not through the link in the email.
4. If you are a company, we strongly advise you to use data leak detection software like HTTPCS CyberVigilance.
5. Finally, since prevention is better than cure, raise awareness among your employees via a personalized phishing campaign.

Halloween is like a ransom note, you either pay with candy or you get a spell

Ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts a victim’s files and demands a ransom to decrypt them.

Once ransomware infects a computer, it encrypts the victim’s files and makes them impossible to access. The victim must then pay the ransom to obtain the decryption key.

According to ANSSI, ransomware, or ransom demands via a virus, affected 73% of companies in 2022.

Ransomware can cause significant damage to businesses, including loss of data, productivity and reputation.

They can also entail significant financial costs, such as paying the ransom or restoring computer systems.

There are several ways to effectively protect yourself from ransomware :

1. Update your software, if you have a lot of it, use Integrity software like HTTPCS Integrity, it will automatically detect all the software to be updated.
2. Use effective protections like powerful anti-virus and firewalls.
3. Make regular backups of your data on devices not connected to the network.
4. As seen in the previous point, be wary of suspicious emails and links.
5. Pro tip: use software that detects security vulnerabilities, this point will be clarified below.

Be secure, or beware of the security ghost!

What’s the best way to protect yourself from hackers this Halloween?

Wear a vulnerability scanner suit.

Indeed, it is crucial and essential to effectively protect yourself with a vulnerability scanner.

A vulnerability scanner is a software tool that analyzes an information system to identify vulnerabilities.

HTTPCS has created a vulnerability scanner called: HTTPCS Security.

Here are some of the benefits of using the HTTPCS Security solution:

• Comprehensive Protection: It protects websites against a wide range of cyberattacks, including SQL injection attacks, cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks, and denial of service (DDoS) attacks.
• Early detection: It helps detect website vulnerabilities before they can be exploited by hackers.
• Continuous monitoring: HTTPCS Security continuously monitors websites for attacks and unauthorized changes.
• Easy to use: HTTPCS Security is an easy to use and manage solution. It does not require any software installation on client servers.
• Adaptability : It is an adaptable solution that can be personalized according to the specific needs of companies.
• Reliability: it is a reliable tool that has been tested and proven.
• Access to Support: It provides access to 24/7 support to help businesses resolve security issues.

Don’t hesitate any longer and use HTTPCS Security!

Why are cyberattacks so scary?

Because they are sneaky and invisible, like ghosts.

So, this Halloween, protect your business and your data!