Written by: Vaughn Alviar
An intellectual explosion allowed countries to run again after a screeching halt last year.
This pandemic boom manifests itself nowadays in norm-shattering apps and programs. QR codes lead to online contact-tracing forms. Apps help us shop safely, requiring only our payment details and addresses. We also came up with the work-from-home setup.
While these developments may appear harmless, a second – more critical – look will reveal some threats, said Ian Felipe, Philippines country manager at Trend Micro, a global leader in enterprise data security and cybersecurity solutions.
“COVID-19 presents a unique problem for governments across the world in terms of user data and privacy,” he noted. “Because of the immediate adaption to digital transformation, we have to accept the fact that we must share our personal information.”
Before the pandemic, people already shared personal data online as though second nature. Amid the pandemic, though, sharing private details became a prerequisite to access services.
Felipe highly encourages us to navigate these sudden musts with vigilance: “It’s not because it’s normal, you just give it away… It’s our right to ask questions: Do you need it? Can I just give this type of information to you instead of everything? By then, you can somehow reduce the risk of providing all the information publicly.”
We can refuse to provide some information, said Felipe. In contact tracing, the name, phone number and e-mail address should be enough. When setting up accounts, especially on social media, people must also digest the terms and conditions and share as little as possible.
“A lot of people do not understand the possible implications … if the information gets in the hands of bad people,” he added. Having been with Trend Micro since 2013, Felipe is very familiar with these bad people, known as “threat actors” in the IT world.
While the Internet has become more accessible and appealing over the years, it has always swarmed with ill-intentioned people. Now, they have more data to take, use and sell. They also aren’t limited to stealing corporate data; they have diversified their business to trading personal information.
Addressing the interconnectedness among gadgets and accounts, Felipe suggests strong security measures, from security solutions to “very, very difficult passwords in every account.”
The work-from-home setup or telecommuting highlights how personal and company values relating to data protection must align, said Felipe. Breaches of personal accounts may become gateways to professional and corporate databases. We answer e-mails, pay bills or get notifications on various gadgets, some we also use for work. Thus, when threat actors hack into one, they may easily get to the rest.
Companies must face that concern head-on, said Trend Micro in its “Turning the Tide” report: “Telecommuting will continue into 2021, and hybrid environments, where work and personal tasks comingle in one machine, will be challenging in terms of security.”
Trend Micro found out that cybercriminals made a killing due to COVID-19. Globally, the company detected more than 16 million COVID-related threats, from malicious URLs and spam to malware. In ransomware, a type of malware that threatens to publish a victim’s data if they do not pay a ransom, Trend Micro found 127 new ransomware families, a 34-percent increase from 2019.
In-house data also revealed that government, banking, manufacturing, healthcare and finance, crucial industries, became hot targets for cybercrime, said Felipe. “A ransomware infection in a hospital can result in patients’ death. A vaccine manufacturing facility that is infected could lead to disruptions in an already stained global supply network.”
No business is safe. He recalled a time when companies that treated cybersecurity as a second or third priority lost money or broke customer trust when “a lot of cybercriminals took advantage of that situation and mentality.” Widespread breaches can cultivate distrust and ultimately weaken the economy, he added.
Threat actors can also be inventive so “whoever is responsible for data must establish a way to gather such information … securely to avoid data leaks,” he said.
Companies relying on telecommuting, for example, must protect their workers’ gadgets and connections with programs similar to those used at their offices. This is because “home networks will likely be the next launch point for threat actors. They will look at hijacking machines and jumping to other machines in the same network to gain corporate access.”
Trend Micro found that VPN, which most people think is impervious, experienced increased attacks in 2020. Hackers also crashed private calls and meetings, baited users with malicious links, and sent posted installers with malware.
“The biggest threat to cybersecurity is not being equipped or prepared for the possibility of a cyberattack,” said Felipe. “Oftentimes, we see enterprises or individuals reach out when an attack or breach already happened.” At that point, the damage can be irreversible.
To assist companies, the industry-leading tool Trend Micro Vision One is used to correlate and analyze all their data. It is a cross-layered detection and response (XDR) mechanism covering multiple security layers: e-mail, endpoint, server, cloud workloads and network.
Trend Micro Vision One provides visibility, detection and response to resolve problems faster and investigate an attack-centric view of a chain of events.
Trend Micro, already in business for 33 years, is the world’s biggest and leading cybersecurity company. Its position in the industry points to a strong track record and a genuine passion to stop the cybercriminals however persistent they may be.
“They never stop. They don’t stop searching for an avenue to attack you and to get what they want,” noted Felipe. Good thing Trend Micro and its Trenders will never stop until the threat actors are all gone and the world is kept safe for exchanging digital information.
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