Dark Web - Is Your Business Vulnerable?
What is the Dark Web?
Per Kaspersky, ‘The dark web is the hidden collective of internet sites only accessible by a specialised web browser.’ It is notoriously used for illegal activities which poses several threats to businesses. Whilst the use of the dark web itself is not illegal, it’s important to remember that ‘the use of the dark web usually means that you are attempting to engage in activity that you could not otherwise carry out in the public eye.’
Simply put, the dark web requires specific software to access content, services and other activities in an anonymous manor. Whilst not necessarily illegal, the dark web is home to several criminals and their activities.
What are the threats to businesses?
So, what are the threats to businesses? As mentioned, the dark web houses many criminals. These criminals range from those who deploy malicious software hoping to infiltrate unsuspecting users to hackers who steal credentials and then sell this information on the dark web.
Hackers that use the dark web for an easy payday can be extremely clever. Their malicious activity is often difficult to detect because it looks like the normal day-to-day operations of employees at work. Cybercriminals tend to buy and sell the credentials they steal on the dark web. If you have employee sign-on credentials that have been exposed to threat actors, your business will be vulnerable to an attack.
Anyone who accesses the dark web is exposed to all forms of malware. With one wrong click, your business could be victim of a ransomware or phishing attack too. On the other hand, if your business security is not optimised and certified to a safe standard, you could become the target of a cybercriminal looking for his next score. With your business data being posted on the dark web at an auction, you can imagine the destruction it would cause when such information ultimately ends up in the wrong hands. This depends on being able to enable:
In fact, a recent study by ITPro indicates a rise in dark web services that make it easier for cyber criminals to breach businesses and launch cyber-attacks without giving away too much in terms of a warning, signal of attack.
What can you do mitigate risk?
Firstly, ask yourself, does my business need to utilise the dark web? If the answer is no, then simply stay away from the dark web. As we’ve established, despite not using the dark web, businesses can find that their business-critical information is stolen and auctioned off on the dark web. That means, you must make sure that your credentials are secure. The stronger your defences, the harder it is for them to be breached. Therefore, there are two main aspects your business should cover to mitigate risk presented by the dark web.
Cyber Security is Up-to-Par
Do your current IT security strategies and solutions meet our Cyber Security Baseline criteria? It may be just the baseline standard security that all businesses should have as a matter of course, but you’d be surprised to know how few businesses we’ve assisted, meet these basic requirements.
A critical step in understanding your overall security posture is to undertake a risk assessment of your systems, as this can identify any security vulnerabilities and gaps in your cyber defences. As part of a risk assessment, a dark web scan will help further identify risk exposure.
Are your cyber security measures strong enough? Why not find out and gauge your current cyber posture. You can do this and self-assess yourself with our handy checklist.
You may find our cyber security self-assessment checklist useful, it’s helped many businesses make a start to improve their cyber security. We also offer comprehensive, free businesses Cyber Security audits.
Dark Web Scanning & Monitoring
In our dark web eBook, we discuss how you can best protect your data and your business. A dark web scan will find exposed user credentials and leaked or stolen data and with ongoing dark web monitoring, should any of your business credentials be exposed in the future, you will receive notifications and be able to take the appropriate remediation measures.
As a preview here’s 3 talking points mentioned within this eBook:
What you and your employees don’t know can hurt you
What to do when your credentials have been exposed
Using a dark web scan as an early warning tool
Alternatively, if you’d like to go ahead and schedule a dark web scan for your business, give us a shout. The results could be quite shocking especially if personal and private information are available for sale on the dark web! No matter the company size, industry and cyber security status, it is business critical to partake in dark web scans and dark web monitoring to ensure that you’re not successfully targeted on the dark web!
