Toronto – high-profile wave cyber attack The disease has recently affected hospitals, businesses and organizations in Ontario, including LCBO this week and the Toronto Hospital for Sick Children and Scouts Canada in December.
The Canadian Press spoke with cyber security experts about whether cyber attacks are on the rise, why they are happening, and what people and businesses can do to protect themselves.
Are cyber attacks becoming more frequent?
Robert Falzon, head of engineering at cybersecurity firm Check Point Canada, says these attacks are “absolutely” happening more frequently than ever before, noting that it’s something that is now going to happen on a daily basis.
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One reason for this is the increasing accessibility of technology that enables the development of malware, scripting and other tools for potential hackers, such as the AI-powered computer program ChatGPT.
“It has the potential for someone who doesn’t have a very high skill set or maybe not even a great command of the English language to use in a phone scam or an email phishing scam or an attack against someone with a complete, almost is for creating lossless scripts. Have you,” Falzon says.
“In the past,[hackers and scammers]relied on their own grammar and spelling skills, which often a lot of people were able to recognize and say, ‘Oh, that looks like a scam.’ It’s getting harder and harder to trace them now.”
Charles Finlay, founding executive director of the Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst Center at Toronto Metropolitan University, agrees that these attacks are on the rise – especially the kind of attack SickKids suffered on December 18, which affected phone lines and internal diagnostic systems. Done and delayed lab and imaging results. ,
“They are on the rise in Western democracies,” says Finlay. “This is a serious problem, a serious challenge, which is becoming increasingly serious.”
Another reason for the growth, he says, is that the ransomware industry is growing as a multi-billion dollar global criminal industry.
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“It is supported by sovereign countries that harbor ransomware attackers, and ransomware attacks have proven to be highly lucrative,” Finlay says, noting that cyberattacks are also on the rise as our reliance on technology grows.
Are public bodies being targeted?
Falzon says that Check Point Canada developed the malware specifically to be deployed against a particular company or entity in what they call a campaign.
“They’re either using phishing or a more advanced version of phishing called whaling, where? It sounds like it’s coming from an executive instructing his employees to do XYZ is,” Falzon says, “and as soon as they open that email or click or do whatever, they infect the organization.
Finlay says hackers will target any organization they believe they can take advantage of, which is one of the reasons the attacks have become more aggressive.
“The more important the organization is to the proper functioning of society or the economy, the more likely it is that a ransomware gang will be able to take advantage of significant financial returns,” says Finlay.
“So the attack on SickKids Hospital is exactly the kind of attack we should expect.”
But it’s possible that organizations aren’t always being targeted, Falzon says, with many of these cyberattacks resulting from what he calls the scattergun approach — sending an email to thousands of potential victims.
“Those are accidental attacks where someone just happened to click on a phishing email or an attachment or something, and then it infected that system in that area. And now you’ve got a widespread problem.
What can people do to protect themselves from cyber attacks?
Keeping computers and mobile devices up to date with the latest software is important, Falzon says, because manufacturers are frequently creating “patches and updates” to target vulnerabilities.
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“As all of these attacks become more sophisticated, our defense needs to become more sophisticated,” says Falzon, noting that passwords should also be updated frequently and never used for more than one site or service. should not be used for
He advises people to download ransomware protection software on personal devices and to be cautious when opening emails or text messages from unknown sources.
“Carrying it around and not having any protection on it is a big risk,” says Falzon.
“Somebody can send you a text, whether it’s WhatsApp, for example, where a simple text[is]sent to your cellphone, you see it, and the next thing you know you’re vulnerable. They’re your Cameras can control your microphone, read your text messages to see where you are, things like that.
What should businesses and organizations do to prevent becoming a victim of a cyber attack?
The question isn’t whether or not an attack will happen, Finlay says, but when — something organizations need to keep in mind.
He suggests they conduct a “really thorough” risk assessment to discover any systems or data that are vulnerable to cyberattacks and then work with experts to determine how best to protect them. .
“This often involves investing in people, processes and technologies, so train your people to be aware of cyber security attacks,” says Finlay.
Cyber awareness training is “absolutely” the first tool businesses, government and even schools need to adopt to protect themselves, says Falzon.
“I firmly believe that we need to start this at an even younger age,” he says.
For example, concepts such as “cyber hygiene” can be taught to children – they can be taught about passwords and how to avoid clicking online.
“We have to switch to prevention rather than trying to detect, because by the time you find out what’s happening, it’s too late,” Falzon said. “It’s already been successful.”