Author: Jane Devry

On Thursday, November 7, SonicWall is set to unveil a new security solution crafted to meet the specific needs of branch offices and small office/home office (SOHO) setups.

With its robust, cost-efficient blend of networking, access, and security capabilities, this subscription-based device is tailored for service providers and value-added resellers, aiming to redefine the cybersecurity landscape for this segment.

The platform leverages a best-in-class firewall that seamlessly integrates with cloud-native zero trust network access (ZTNA) and VPN-as-a-service (VPNaaS), delivering optimal protection for hybrid environments. Supported by industry-leading technical assistance, the solution also offers firewall management, network monitoring, and the unprecedented addition of a cyber threat warranty.

Would you be interested in receiving this release under embargo and/or speaking with Chief Strategy Officer Matt Neiderman to discuss how SonicWall’s solution is reshaping network security by uniting on-premise, hybrid, and cloud technologies into a unified offering?

The post SonicWall Unveils Cutting-Edge Security Solution for Branch and Small Office Environments appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

Securing Operational Technology (OT) in today’s industrial environments has never been more challenging, with blind spots like unmanaged legacy assets, transient devices, and unauthorized USBs presenting significant vulnerabilities. To make things worse, OT systems often rely on older, specialized equipment that lacks built-in cybersecurity defenses and cannot afford downtime for updates and security audits.

However, these vulnerabilities extend far beyond individual devices and assets. The complexity of securing OT systems lies in the multiple, interconnected workflows that organizations must manage. From ensuring supply chain security to safeguarding air-gapped systems and performing regular machine inspections, every step introduces distinct challenges. Each process requires tailored security measures, making it difficult to maintain a unified and seamless defense strategy.

To overcome these challenges, organizations need a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy that integrates People, Process, and Technology into their operations. This strategy must not only establish secure supply chain practices but also ensure continuous protection for daily operations and isolated systems without disrupting business activities. By streamlining processes and adopting the right technology, organizations can prevent interruptions, minimize risks, and create a resilient OT environment capable of withstanding evolving cyber threats.

INTRODUCING TXONE’S ELEMENT PORTFOLIO: A Comprehensive Suite for OT Security

This is where TXOne Networks steps in, offering the Element portfolio, a suite of products designed specifically for OT security to support existing processes without introducing additional complexity or burden on already stretched-thin teams. The Element portfolio comprises several key solutions:

ElementOne: A centralized management platform at the heart of the Element portfolio that provides a holistic view of OT assets, risk assessments, and audit logs to mitigate risks while simplifying operations. It streamlines security management by integrating Portable Inspector and Safe Port, enabling centralized policy enforcement, configuration deployment, and scan log management, all from one interface.

Portable Inspector: An agentless, malware scanning USB-based tool designed for OT assets, including air-gapped and standalone systems. It inspects devices without the need for software installation or system reboots, making it ideal for environments requiring continuous uptime. Its Secure Storage feature ensures safe file transfer, allowing only clean data into the OT environment.

Safe Port: A media sanitization station that rapidly scans and cleans external media (like USB drives) before they are introduced into sensitive OT environments, preventing malware from entering critical infrastructure. It integrates with Portable Inspector to centralize audit log management, streamlining security processes and ensuring comprehensive protection across devices.

ELEMENTONE: The Command Center for Comprehensive OT Security

A major challenge in OT environments is the lack of visibility into system vulnerabilities, assets, and security posture. Security teams often struggle to maintain a real-time understanding of which systems are running outdated software, which devices are compromised, and which patches are missing. This lack of insight forces organizations to adopt a reactive security approach, responding to threats only after they’ve caused damage.

ElementOne transforms this scenario by providing a comprehensive and unified platform that aggregates data from across the OT landscape. By integrating Portable Inspector and Safe Port, ElementOne enables centralized control over malware scanning, asset management, and log collection. This integration ensures efficient synchronization of scan logs and security data, creating a streamlined security workflow across all OT assets.

ElementOne Dashboard

KEY CAPABILITIES: ELEMENTONE

To better understand how ElementOne transforms OT security, let’s look at its key capabilities:

•Centralized Asset-Centric and Risk Management: ElementOne provides a comprehensive overview of OT assets, displaying system specifications, OS versions, installed applications, and vulnerabilities, such as missing patches. This centralization ensures organizations have clear visibility into their OT environment and can assess risks more effectively.

•Holistic View for Risk Assessment: In addition to asset management, ElementOne offers a risk assessment dashboard that prioritizes vulnerabilities and highlights areas requiring attention, enabling security teams to proactively address critical risks.

•Centralized Log Management: ElementOne collects and consolidates logs from connected devices like Portable Inspector and Safe Port, simplifying audit trails and tracking malware scans and security events across the OT environment.

•Detailed Asset Reporting: The platform generates detailed, exportable reports on system configurations, installed applications, vulnerability scans, and active services. These reports are essential for meeting compliance requirements and ensuring operational transparency.

•Audit and Compliance: ElementOne streamlines compliance by providing automated malware-free reports and tracking all security-related activities, allowing organizations to meet regulatory requirements with minimal effort.

•Pattern Distribution: Portable Inspector and Safe Port obtain the latest malware patterns from ElementOne, ensuring all security products are up to date without manual intervention, significantly reducing the risk of outdated protection.

•Role-Based Access Control with SAML SSO: Security teams can assign access rights based on user roles, minimizing the risk of unauthorized access to critical systems and ensuring only the right personnel can interact with sensitive data. With support for SAML Single Sign-On (SSO), ElementOne integrates seamlessly with existing Identity Providers (IdPs), allowing users to authenticate using their corporate credentials and simplifying account management.

•SIEM Integration: ElementOne integrates with Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) platforms like Splunk, enabling enhanced threat detection, incident response, and centralized security management.

These capabilities directly translate into several benefits for organizations:

KEY BENEFITS

1.EFFICIENCY

By consolidating security processes such as asset and log management, vulnerability tracking, and reporting into a single platform, ElementOne eliminates the inefficiencies caused by fragmented tools and reduces the overhead required for manual operations such as vulnerability tracking and compliance reporting. This significantly reduces operational complexity and streamlines security processes across the OT environment.

2.PROACTIVE RISK MANAGEMENT

ElementOne’s risk assessment solutions allow organizations to prioritize remediation efforts based on realtime vulnerability insights. This proactive approach helps prevent breaches before they occur by addressing the most critical risks first.

3.COMPLIANCE AND AUDIT SIMPLIFICATION

The platform automatically generates comprehensive asset reports and audit logs, ensuring that organizations meet regulatory requirements with minimal manual effort. The ease of generating these reports simplifies both internal and external audits.

4.IMPROVED VISIBILITY

ElementOne provides a holistic view of OT systems, assets, and vulnerabilities, giving security teams better control over their environment and helping to identify hidden risks across isolated or air-gapped systems.

5.SCALABILITY

ElementOne’s flexible architecture supports both small businesses and large enterprises. As the needs of the organization grow, the platform scales to accommodate more assets, users, and security operations without compromising performance. With SIEM integration, it can seamlessly integrate with customers’ existing SIEM systems, allowing organizations to scale their security operations without disrupting their current infrastructure.

6.REDUCED OPERATIONAL OVERHEAD

The platform’s ability to synchronize malware pattern updates and centralize log management reduces the amount of manual work required from IT and security teams, freeing up resources for other critical tasks.

7.ENHANCED SECURITY CONTROLS

With role-based access control and support for SAML Single Sign-On (SSO), ElementOne strengthens security by ensuring that only authorized personnel can access sensitive systems and by enhancing overall threat detection capabilities through advanced integrations.

PORTABLE INSPECTOR: Agentless Malware Scanning for Isolated OT Systems

One of the greatest challenges in OT security lies in protecting OT assets, especially standalone or air-gapped systems—networks or devices isolated from the internet or broader IT infrastructure for safety and operational reasons. Additionally, ensuring supply chain security is crucial when shipping and receiving new machines. Both suppliers and customers must ensure that equipment is malware-free before it is deployed, maintaining its original state and security integrity. Conventional security tools are often inadequate for these systems because they rely on constant updates, internet access, or complex installations that disrupt operations.

Portable Inspector

Portable Inspector was designed specifically to overcome these limitations. As a portable, USBbased product, it delivers on-demand malware scanning for isolated OT devices, requiring no software installation or system reboots. This ensures that critical operations remain uninterrupted, while systems are thoroughly protected from external threats.

For instance, in a manufacturing plant with legacy equipment that cannot afford downtime, Portable Inspector allows security teams to scan systems on-demand without impacting production, ensuring continued uptime while maintaining robust protection. Additionally, Portable Inspector is ideal for both suppliers and customers in the supply chain. Suppliers can generate malware free reports before shipping new machines, and customers can verify the machines are secure upon receipt, ensuring they are malware-free before deployment into production environments.

KEY CAPABILITIES: PORTABLE INSPECTOR

Let’s explore the key capabilities that make Portable Inspector so effective:

•Agentless Malware Scanning: Portable Inspector provides on-demand malware scans without requiring software installation or a system reboot. This ensures that OT environments with critical uptime requirements are protected with minimal operational disruption, making it ideal for systems that cannot afford downtime.

•Cross-Platform and Legacy System Support: Portable Inspector is compatible with a wide range of operating systems, including both modern and legacy platforms such as Windows XP and Linux distributions. This extensive platform support ensures that even outdated or isolated OT assets are protected.

•Detailed Asset Information Collection: In addition to scanning for malware, Portable Inspector automatically collects detailed system snapshots, including information on the operating system, installed applications, and vulnerability status. This data is invaluable for improving visibility across OT environments.

•AES-256 Encrypted Secure File Transfer (Pro Edition): For environments requiring secure data transfer between air-gapped systems, Portable Inspector’s Pro Edition offers AES-256 hardware encryption to ensure that sensitive files are safely transferred while remaining malware-free.

•Centralized Log Management: Portable Inspector integrates seamlessly with ElementOne, allowing scan logs and asset information to be uploaded either directly or via Safe Port. This centralization simplifies the auditing process and provides security teams with a unified view of all scanning activities across OT environments.

•User-Friendly LED Indicators: Portable Inspector features intuitive LED indicators that display scanning progress and results in real time. This feature allows even non-technical staff to quickly understand the scan status, ensuring easy deployment in industrial settings and reducing the need for dedicated security personnel on the ground.

With these capabilities, Portable Inspector offers distinct benefits to OT environments:

KEY BENEFITS

1.OPERATIONAL CONTINUITY

Portable Inspector’s agentless design allows it to scan isolated or air-gapped systems without requiring installations or reboots. This ensures minimal disruption to operations, which is critical in OT environments where uptime is essential.

2.ENHANCED SECURITY

The product provides robust protection for OT assets without the need to modify system configurations or add complex setups. By scanning without leaving a software footprint, Portable Inspector minimizes the attack surface while maintaining security on legacy systems.

3.IMPROVED ASSET VISIBILITY

Beyond malware scanning, Portable Inspector collects detailed asset information, including OS, application versions, and patch statuses. This capability greatly enhances visibility into the OT environment, helping security teams identify hidden risks and shadow IT.

4.SECURE DATA TRANSFERS

For organizations using the Pro Edition, Portable Inspector enables AES-256 encrypted file transfers between isolated systems, ensuring that sensitive data remains protected while being moved across air-gapped environments.

5.SIMPLIFIED AUDITING AND COMPLIANCE

By integrating with ElementOne and Safe Port, Portable Inspector can automatically upload scan logs and asset data, either directly or via Safe Port, simplifying audit processes and providing a comprehensive view of security operations. This centralization reduces manual work, making it easier to meet compliance requirements.

6.EASY DEPLOYMENT AND USE

The intuitive design of Portable Inspector, including its LED indicators, allows even non-technical personnel to operate the product effectively. This ensures that security processes can be integrated seamlessly into industrial workflows, reducing the need for extensive training.

7.LEGACY AND CROSS-PLATFORM PROTECTION

With support for both modern and legacy systems, Portable Inspector ensures that even outdated OT systems are protected. This broad compatibility makes it easier for organizations to secure their entire infrastructure without needing multiple tools.

SAFE PORT: Rapid Media Sanitization for OT Environments

Removable media continues to be one of the most significant attack vectors for malware in OT environments. USB drives and other external devices are essential for transferring data across OT systems, but they also introduce a potential entry point for cyberattacks, especially in environments where security controls are less stringent. This makes protecting against malware from external media a critical concern for industries with sensitive OT infrastructure.

Safe Port

 

Safe Port addresses this challenge by providing a ruggedized, industrial-grade media sanitization solution. It rapidly scans and cleans removable media, such as USB drives, before they can be introduced into OT systems, ensuring that malware is detected and neutralized at the perimeter. Built specifically for industrial environments, Safe Port is designed to handle the unique demands of OT plants, offering speed, simplicity, and enhanced protection.

Additionally, Safe Port integrates with ElementOne and Portable Inspector to further simplify security workflows. Portable Inspector logs and malware patterns can be automatically uploaded to ElementOne. This integration streamlines both the scanning and update processes, making Safe Port a central hub for both media sanitization and managing Portable Inspector’s logs and pattern updates. This allows security teams to manage scan logs centrally and streamline compliance reporting. It combines ease of use with industrial-grade durability, making it a trusted solution for safeguarding OT environments against malware threats introduced via removable media.

KEY CAPABILITIES: SAFE PORT

Let’s explore the key capabilities of Safe Port:

•Rapid Scanning and Media Sanitization: Safe Port processes up to 7,200 files per minute, ensuring that removable media such as USB drives are scanned and sanitized quickly, minimizing operational delays in OT environments. It supports three flexible scan modes: “Log Only” for detailed reporting, “Clean” for malware removal, and “Lock” for isolating and encrypting unscannable or malicious files. This speed is critical in industries where continuous uptime is paramount, as it allows for fast media processing while preventing malware from entering sensitive systems.

•Rugged Design for Industrial Environments: Safe Port is built to withstand the demanding conditions of industrial OT plants, with a ruggedized design that ensures durability and reliability. Its construction allows it to operate effectively in harsh environments where typical IT equipment may fail, making it suitable for continuous operation in OT settings.

•Centralized Audit Log Collection: Safe Port integrates with ElementOne and Portable Inspector, allowing scan logs, sanitization data, and asset information to be automatically uploaded to a centralized management console. This simplifies audit trails, compliance processes, and overall security management by ensuring all activities are tracked and reported in real time.

•Seamless Integration with ElementOne: Safe Port works as part of the Element portfolio, allowing security teams to manage all scan logs and compliance data through the ElementOne platform. This centralization ensures that all removable media activities are part of a cohesive security strategy, reducing manual intervention and simplifying reporting.

•Automated Malware Pattern Updates: Safe Port can synchronize malware pattern updates with ElementOne, ensuring it has the latest threat definitions and protections in place. This capability eliminates the need for manual updates, reducing the risk of outdated security measures.

•User-Friendly Touchscreen Interface: Safe Port features an intuitive touchscreen interface that allows non-technical staff to easily scan and sanitize media. This simplicity ensures that Safe Port can be deployed quickly in industrial environments without requiring specialized training.

•Hardened Security Features: Safe Port enhances system security with several hardening measures, including TXOne’s proprietary BIOS, restrictions on inbound transmissions, and the disabling of physical inputs (such as mouse and keyboard). These measures ensure that Safe Port itself is protected from external threats while handling sensitive media.

By utilizing these capabilities, Safe Port delivers several key benefits for OT environments:

KEY BENEFITS

1.IMPROVED SECURITY

By scanning all removable media before they are introduced into OT environments, Safe Port ensures that malware is detected and neutralized early, reducing the risk of infections in critical systems. This proactive approach strengthens the security perimeter and prevents the introduction of malicious software into industrial networks.

2.OPERATIONAL CONTINUITY

With its rapid scanning capabilities of up to 7,200 files per minute, Safe Port ensures minimal downtime, allowing organizations to securely process media without disrupting operational workflows. This benefit is crucial for industries where continuous operations are essential.

3.EASE OF USE

The intuitive touchscreen interface and simple operation make Safe Port accessible to non-experts, reducing the need for specialized security staff to manage media sanitization. This feature allows industrial staff to quickly sanitize media without the need for extensive training, making it suitable for a wide range of environments.

4.CENTRALIZED MANAGEMENT WITH ELEMENTONE

When integrated with ElementOne, Safe Port enables security teams to manage media scans and sanitize logs from a centralized dashboard. Additionally, Safe Port can serve as a hub for Portable Inspector by uploading logs and malware patterns to ElementOne through Safe Port. This integration streamlines both media sanitization and asset management processes, optimizing workflows and simplifying audits.

5.REGULATORY COMPLIANCE

Safe Port helps organizations maintain compliance with industry regulations by ensuring that all media sanitization activities are recorded and stored for audit purposes. This capability reduces the administrative burden of proving compliance and enables more streamlined reporting.

6.REDUCED RISK OF HUMAN ERROR

Safe Port reduces the likelihood of human error by automating key processes such as scanning and logging through ElementOne. This automation ensures consistent scanning and logging of all removable media, minimizing the risk of malware bypassing protection due to human oversight.

7.SEAMLESS INDUSTRIAL INTEGRATION

Safe Port is designed to integrate seamlessly into existing OT workflows without disrupting operations. Its durable, industrial-grade build ensures reliable performance in demanding environments, making it suitable for continuous use in OT settings.

CONCLUSION: A Proactive, Game-Changing Solution for OT Security

The TXOne Element portfolio represents a transformative solution, uniquely addressing the complex security challenges faced by OT environments. With ElementOne at the core, security teams gain unparalleled visibility and control over OT assets, vulnerabilities, and audit logs through a single, unified platform. Complemented by Portable Inspector for seamless, agentless malware scanning in isolated systems and Safe Port for rapid, industrial-grade media sanitization, TXOne delivers a comprehensive and proactive approach to securing critical OT infrastructures.

By integrating these three products, the Element portfolio significantly improves people and process workflows. It reduces dependency on specialized security personnel by providing intuitive interfaces and automated processes that can be managed by non-expert users. With enhanced asset visibility, media sanitization, and secure file handling, the Element portfolio not only strengthens operational security but also ensures consistent protection across OT environments, all while maintaining operational uptime and reducing operational burdens.

Furthermore, streamlined workflows such as automated log collection, centralized management, and simplified compliance reporting enable organizations to optimize resources. These capabilities allow security teams to focus on addressing critical threats rather than being bogged down by manual tasks, ultimately improving both security outcomes and operational efficiency.

In a world where cyber threats evolve rapidly, the TXOne Element portfolio stands out as a robust, scalable,

and future-proof solution. With its ongoing updates and flexibility to scale alongside organizational growth,

TXOne ensures that businesses are always equipped to tackle emerging risks. This suite of products positions itself as an essential investment for any OT environment seeking to strengthen its security posture while confidently protecting its most critical systems against today’s and tomorrow’s cyber threats.

ABOUT TXONE

At TXOne Networks, we work together with both leading manufacturers and critical infrastructure operators to develop practical, operations-friendly approaches to cyber defense. The OT zero trust based technologies we’ve developed go beyond the limitations of traditional cyber defense to streamline management, reduce security overhead, and resolve challenges faster. We offer both network- and endpoint-based solutions that integrate with the layered arrangements and varied assets common to work sites, providing real-time, defense-in-depth cybersecurity to both mission critical devices and the OT network. www.txone.com

The post PRODUCT REVIEW: TXONE NETWORKS FOR PROACTIVE OT DEFENSE appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

If you want to stay healthy and live a long and prosperous life, you don’t just visit the doctor annually so they can listen to your heart and lungs; you also follow up with lab work to check cholesterol and sugar levels. You must go deeper than a surface examination to look for factors that the medical professional in the office cannot detect. The same applies to cybersecurity; you must go beyond baseline procedures and perform Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) to maintain healthy network and application operations by inspecting packets beyond the surface-level headers. 

Why Deep Packet Inspection Matters

It’s the content that matters, not just the headers. DPI examines the payload of network packets and the content, not just the headers. Malicious actors often hide deep within the traffic, evading surface detection. DPI analyzes network traffic in real time, searching for anomalies, encrypted attacks, or unusual behaviors that log detection used by itself cannot pick up. The following are DPI’s advantages:

1. Comprehensive Threat Detection

Comprehensive visibility into network activity is needed to detect and stop cyber threats. For this kind of full-viewing, both log data and packet analysis are required. Log event analysis will highlight user logins or application usage, whereas packet analysis will dive deeper to identify various types of network traffic . Data exfiltration activities, such as unusual amounts of data leaving the network, will not be evidenced in log analysis. To find this data, you need DPI.

Another example is unknown or suspicious protocols that indicate malware or other threats. Again, DPI will uncover these activities by filling in critical gaps left by a process that relies on log-based detection alone. With DPI, security teams can access the entire threat landscape, including encrypted traffic that may bypass Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) tools. The advantage of adding a DPI process is that malicious activities are identified sooner.

2. Real-Time Threat Detection

One of the biggest concerns with relying solely on log analysis is latency. When you collect, process, and analyze the log data, threats may still be working their way inside your systems. Packet inspection operates in real-time, catching threats in the act and allowing for a response while the criminals still work through your network. Ransomware is known to be a fast-moving attack, which means that every second counts when it comes to detecting and stopping it. DPI allows security teams to monitor network traffic as it happens and immediately zero in on suspicious activity. Data breaches and malware infections require swift action to minimize damage, and DPI is the proactive method needed in today’s sophisticated attack environment.

3. Improved Incident Correlation

Combining DPI with log analysis has the advantage of correlating incidents across multiple data sources. Combining analysis uncovers attacker tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs). Log event activity can bring attention to abnormal entries, and when combined with packet inspection, threat activity can be correlated and identified. With this integrated approach, your security teams become more effective threat detectors because they can observe and understand patterns that reveal connections between different attack vectors. The integration of log analysis with DPI delivers a much broader and deeper view of attack surface areas.

4. DPI and Log Analysis: A Critical Combination

By integrating DPI with log analysis, organizations can detect encrypted threats, anomalous traffic, and subtle signs of attacks hidden within network traffic. The knock-out punch delivered by the combined analysis is maximum visibility into potential threats complemented by accurate and timely detection. Advanced, multi-stage attacks have significantly reduced success rates when security teams have the data they need to catch criminals.

Best Practices for Leveraging Log and Packet Analysis

Consider the following best practices when combining DPI with log analysis:

  • Comprehensive coverage is needed to ensure that log and packet data are captured from all critical systems, including servers, endpoints, and network devices. Security teams must monitor all activity; otherwise, a threat can be missed.
  • Your DPI tool must have Real-time Monitoring as a function so that real-time visibility into network traffic is attained and suspicious activities can be detected immediately. Thus, fast response times can be assured.
  • Regular vulnerability scanning and penetration testing will identify any vulnerabilities that may not be detectable through log data alone. DPI can highlight traffic anomalies that could otherwise go undetected. 

MDR, XDR and DPI Go Hand-In-Hand

Managed Detection and Response (MDR) and Extended Detection and Response (XDR) should be leveraged to detect and respond to endpoint or network-level threats if your company does not have an in-house security team. 

MDR and XDR rely on aggregating and analyzing data, often by looking at on-prem or cloud-based traffic. Leveraging DPI can enhance MDR and XDR service by providing deeper insights for thorough and reliable threat detection. This combined approach delivers a comprehensive, real-time view of network activity and boosts an organization’s ability to detect and respond to threats effectively. 

CONCLUSION

Log-based detection certainly plays a critical cybersecurity role, but it can’t do so alone. Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) is a necessary addition to the process because it delivers complete visibility into network traffic and allows security teams to detect threats in real-time due to incident correlation. The combination of DPI plus MDR and XDR is a comprehensive defense strategy that enables security teams to quickly identify network traffic anomalies and respond immediately to reduce the chances that the breach will be successful. Organizations that leverage all techniques will be better equipped to face today’s sophisticated cyber threats and ensure their security posture is as strong as possible.

 

 

 

The post Real-Time Protection: How Deep Packet Inspection Enhances Detection and Response appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

No matter how strong your defenses may be, determined bad actors will likely find a way to break in. Beyond preventing infiltration, organizations must also employ methods that can identify the presence of bad actors in the network after a successful intrusion.

Modern Cyber Attacks Extend Far Beyond Initial Access

Traditional attacks were simple and straightforward. Threat actors would exploit a vulnerability like a weak password or unpatched software. Once inside, they would smash and grab whatever they could. In contrast, modern cyberattacks are far more complex and multi-staged. Once attackers achieve initial access using techniques like phishing and exploiting vulnerabilities, they employ a series of carefully orchestrated steps such as:

  • Maintaining Persistence: Attackers create new user accounts, change passwords of existing ones, use remote access tools (like Teamviewer or AnyDesk), and create new scheduled tasks to ensure they do not lose access to the victim’s environment.
  • Escalating Privileges: Adversaries search for things like unpatched systems, misconfigured permissions or user credentials (via phishing or keylogging) to gain higher privileges and to access more sensitive data and systems.
  • Evading Defenses: To avoid detection, some malicious actors will disable endpoint protection tools. Some will leverage legitimate system tools (a.k.a. Living off the Land) like PowerShell, Windows Management Instrumentation, or PSExec, so that they can operate stealthily without raising alarms.
  • Making Lateral Movements: Using privileged accounts they may have recently acquired, bad actors will attempt lateral movement across the network, trying to access more systems and data.
  • Exfiltrating Data: One of the biggest objectives of bad actors is to exfiltrate sensitive data so it can be monetized later. Attackers normally use pre-existing tools that are already permitted by the organization to exfiltrate data, because using these tools makes their misdeeds harder to detect.

The Anatomy of a Multi-staged Attack

While threat actors go about executing their attacks, it’s important to note that every phase of the attack lifecycle is an opportunity to detect their actions, particularly through detection and response strategies. 

During the persistence phase, employees can keep an eye out for any new accounts or unauthorized activity. They can also prompt the security team to investigate if they encounter any scheduled tasks or unusual system behavior. To detect privilege escalation, users periodically review access permissions so any unauthorized changes or abnormal access patterns can be detected proactively. Employees can also be taught to recognize signs of defense evasions such as endpoint security getting disabled or abnormal processes running on the endpoint. Unexpected logins or unusual activities on user accounts (such as users logging in from unusual locations or unfamiliar devices) can also help detect lateral movements. If an employee suddenly receives a multi-factor authentication prompt they did not initiate, then this might be an indication of a threat actor trying to make lateral movement. If users encounter unusual outbound network traffic or unexpected large data transfers to a cloud account, then this might also be a sign of data being exfiltrated or stolen. 

How To Boost Detection and Response

There are a few tools and techniques that can be leveraged to boost detection and response including:

1.Human Risk Management (strategy and systems): HRM integrates with existing cybersecurity and IT infrastructure like Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), Security Information and Event Management (SIEM), and others. These platforms can help detect, correlate, and respond to suspicious or anomalous user activities across thousands of security events. 

2.Imparting Continuous Security Awareness Training: Most organizations underestimate the power of human intuition and observation. They may rely too heavily on cybersecurity tools and technologies, often neglecting the invaluable role employees can play in detecting cyberattacks. If employees are trained well and trained regularly, they can provide critical insights from the front lines which can serve as an effective layer of defense and detection, enabling organizations to improve incident response times.

3.Cultivating A Culture of Cybersecurity: A culture of cybersecurity fosters collaboration between employees and encourages them to share information about threats. It instills a sense of responsibility and accountability which helps detect threats early. The idea behind cybersecurity culture is to weave secure behaviors into the very fabric or the workplace. Best practices include embedding cybersecurity into product development and everyday decision making; leaders leading cybersecurity initiatives by example and encouraging open and transparent dialogue on cybersecurity issues.

At some point, most organizations will be attacked or compromised. Human risk management can play an important role in detecting and blocking attacks before they can cause further material damage. By deploying continuous security training and building a culture of cybersecurity, organizations can significantly boost their detection and response abilities, fostering cybersecurity resilience.

 

 

 

The post Using Human Risk Management to Detect and Thwart Cyberattacks appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

Quadrant Information Security (Quadrant), a prominent provider of Managed Detection and Response (MDR) services, has introduced Free Dark Web Reports designed to help organizations detect and manage their exposed credentials and data on the Dark Web. These reports equip organizations with key insights into compromised information and actionable guidance to mitigate potential risks.

Quadrant’s Free Dark Web Reports offer a strategic solution by flagging exposed credentials and related data specific to each organization. With this new service, clients can access monthly reports that spotlight recently discovered leaks, enabling timely interventions like password resets and policy updates to protect their environments.

Quadrant is extending this complimentary service to non-clients for a limited time, targeting organizations with up to 5,000 employees. Each report redacts sensitive information to meet regulatory privacy standards.

“Many security leaders are shocked to see the sheer amount of compromised data sitting on the Dark Web related to their organization,” stated Jeff Foresman, President of Services at Quadrant. “This proactive discovery of compromised credentials helps companies avoid expensive breaches and data loss. These reports are informational and directly useful for implementing better security measures.”

Key Advantages of Quadrant’s Free Dark Web Reports:

  • Proactive Risk Management: Early identification of compromised credentials enables swift actions, such as password resets and security adjustments, to prevent potential breaches.
  • Enhanced Protection for High-Risk Users: The service identifies users at greater risk of phishing or credential theft, allowing organizations to concentrate defensive efforts where they are needed most.
  • Detailed, Actionable Insights: These reports deliver comprehensive insights that organizations can incorporate immediately into their cybersecurity strategies to reinforce their defenses.

In light of the increase in credential-based attacks, having visibility into Dark Web activity is now more essential than ever. Quadrant’s Free Dark Web Reports provide a critical resource for organizations aiming to safeguard their assets and minimize vulnerabilities. To request a free Dark Web Report, visit www.quadrantsec.com/darkweb.

The post Quadrant Launches Free Dark Web Reports to Help Organizations Identify Leaked Credentials and Sensitive Information appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

The emphasis on securing supply chains against sophisticated cyberattacks has never been more pressing. The supply chain represents a vital artery for diverse industries, from healthcare to manufacturing, yet remains a prime vector for cyber infiltration. 

In an era of increasingly interconnected business ecosystems, third-party vendors often hold the keys to sensitive systems and data without the security infrastructure that larger enterprises rely on. This imbalance reveals a significant vulnerability, with 56% of organizations reporting third-party data breaches, according to a survey conducted by Ponemon. In the majority of cases, excessive or unmanaged privileged access granted to third parties was the root cause. 

With the rise of advanced threats like ransomware, supply chain poisoning, and AI-enhanced social engineering, it’s clear that organizations must adopt a more forward-looking, proactive defense strategy. The question isn’t whether a supply chain will be attacked; it’s how effectively it can be defended. 

New era, new threats 

Modern attackers aren’t merely opportunistic—they’re strategic. Supply chain vulnerabilities offer attackers a less fortified entry point into larger, well-defended organizations. Cybercriminals know that breaching a smaller vendor with inadequate security measures can provide the access needed to disrupt an entire network of businesses; they also increasingly view third-party vendors as the weakest link in a security chain, exploiting their connections to enterprises for significant, often devastating breaches.

One prominent and growing threat is supply chain poisoning—a method where malicious actors compromise components or code during a product or service’s development or distribution phases. Once the poisoned asset enters the ecosystem, the impact multiplies, affecting numerous organizations reliant on the compromised software or hardware. This form of attack underscores the vulnerability in operational security and the software development lifecycle, where vetting and oversight can be inconsistent.

Modern cyber attacks are complex. Your defenses should be too. 

The convergence of AI-driven social engineering and traditional tactics has created a new breed of cyber threats. Today’s attackers can employ AI to conduct advanced phishing campaigns, utilizing deep fake technology to convincingly impersonate high-ranking executives or trusted third-party vendors. These AI-enhanced attacks bypass many human-level heuristics traditionally relied upon to detect fraud.

In a recent incident, we heard from a client that cybercriminals leveraged AI to synthesize a convincing replica of a senior executive’s voice. By mimicking tone, cadence, and speech patterns, they were able to deceive an organization’s help desk into nearly resetting multi-factor authentication (MFA) credentials—effectively granting the attackers full access to critical systems. This near-breach was only averted because of a stringent, albeit somewhat outdated, internal policy requiring in-person verification for such requests.

This incident illustrates the growing sophistication of AI-enhanced social engineering attacks, where even advanced security measures can be circumvented by well-crafted, highly personalized exploits. As AI continues to evolve, organizations must anticipate these more subtle, harder-to-detect threats, reinforcing their authentication protocols and building resilience against AI-generated deception.

In parallel, ransomware has evolved from a blunt-force tool into a more targeted and surgical weapon. Attackers now look for critical vulnerabilities in supply chains, recognizing that disrupting a single supplier can have far-reaching consequences for an entire ecosystem. The goal is no longer to extract a ransom from a singular entity but to leverage disruption across multiple organizations, compounding the financial and operational damage.

To stay ahead, organizations must recognize that AI isn’t only a tool for attackers—it’s also a powerful ally in defense. By leveraging AI and automation, companies can enhance their own security systems, building layers of protection that match the sophistication of today’s threats.

If organizations are serious about safeguarding their supply chains, they must also commit to upgrading status quo defenses. The complexity of modern cyber threats demands a strategic pivot toward leveraging AI and automation to bolster security at multiple levels. AI’s ability to ingest, process, and analyze vast quantities of data at speeds far beyond human capability makes it a natural fit for automating risk assessments and monitoring for anomalies within supply chain networks.

AI-enabled systems can continuously analyze data traffic and behavior patterns, identifying subtle deviations that might otherwise go unnoticed. They can also automate real-time threat detection and response, reducing dwell time and minimizing the window of opportunity for attackers.

And while AI and automation offer powerful tools for enhancing supply chain security, they’re not a silver bullet. Even the most sophisticated systems cannot fully compensate for the risk introduced by human error. 

A stringent security posture is key

Beyond AI, strong third-party access management tools play a critical role in keeping intrusions at bay. Solutions like Vendor Privileged Access Management (VPAM) offer precise control over who can access sensitive information and for how long, making sure that only verified, authorized users get through. With tools that monitor, limit, and secure vendor access, organizations gain a vital layer of protection that addresses the unique risks posed by third-party interactions.

Employee education and awareness also remain critical components of any robust security strategy. After all, phishing attacks — many designed to compromise third-party vendors — still rely on human oversight failures to gain traction. 

Employees, particularly those who interact with external vendors, must be trained to recognize the tactics used in social engineering schemes, understand the protocols for granting access to sensitive systems, and exercise skepticism in the face of unexpected or unusual requests.It’s essential to cultivate a security-first culture across the organization. Employees should understand that third-party vendors are not employees and, therefore, not held to the same security standards. Interactions with third-party vendors require heightened scrutiny. 

Leadership must champion this mindset, demonstrating an unwavering commitment to security by integrating these practices into everyday operations. Clear communication, ongoing training, and a well-defined protocol for managing third-party access can reduce the likelihood of human errors, which often act as the entry points for more significant breaches.

As we consider the future, the role of AI-resistant security frameworks will become increasingly important. The very technologies that allow organizations to defend their supply chains can also be co-opted by attackers to enhance their methods. To mitigate this risk, companies must focus on strengthening identity verification and authentication processes. 

Multi-factor authentication (MFA) and advanced AI algorithms can serve as a robust defense against AI-generated impersonation attempts. Biometric authentication (fingerprint scanning or facial recognition, for instance) adds a layer of security that is difficult to falsify using current AI techniques, safeguarding against deepfakes and other fraudulent activities.

What does the future of cybersecurity look like? 

Moving forward, we will likely see the evolution of self-managing systems that not only detect vulnerabilities and abnormalities but can automatically patch them without the need for human intervention. This kind of proactive cybersecurity, driven by continuous machine learning, will be critical in maintaining an edge over attackers who are constantly refining their methods. These innovations will allow for real-time adjustments in security postures, ensuring that the weakest link in a supply chain does not become the entry point for catastrophic breaches.

As cyber security threats become more and more sophisticated, organizations must reexamine their defenses, and the spotlight on supply chain security must remain bright. The interdependencies that define modern business make supply chains a critical asset and a significant risk. By integrating AI and automation with a strong culture of human vigilance, organizations can build a resilient supply chain that withstands today’s attacks and anticipates tomorrow’s threats.

The future of cybersecurity lies not in reacting to threats but in preventing them from ever taking hold, turning vulnerability into strength through intelligent, resilient and adaptable security.

 

The post How to protect against supply chain cyber risk with automation appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

Phishing campaigns relentlessly continue to evolve, utilizing innovative tricks to deceive users. ANY.RUN, the interactive malware analysis service, recently uncovered a phishing attack that takes advantage of fake CAPTCHA prompts to execute malicious scripts on victims’ systems.

How the Attack Works

In this phishing campaign, users are lured to a compromised website and are asked to complete a CAPTCHA, allegedly to verify their human identity or fix non-existent display errors on the page. 

The moment they comply, the attackers exploit their trust by instructing them to run a malicious script via the Windows “Run” function (WIN+R). Specifically, users are tricked into executing a PowerShell script, which leads to system infection and potential compromise.

Stages of the attack

This phishing technique not only capitalizes on common web security practices like CAPTCHA verification but also adds a layer of urgency with fake error messages, increasing the likelihood of user compliance.

Fake messages displayed to users.

ANY.RUN Threat Intelligence Lookup

ANY.RUN’s TI Lookup tool allows users to search for suspicious domains and investigate similar threats in detail.

Search by the domain name “*verif*b-cdn.net” in ANY.RUN TI Lookup

For instance, a search query for domainName:”*verif*b-cdn.net” or domainName:”*.human*b-cdn.net” in the TI Lookup tool reveals multiple associated domains, IP addresses and sandbox sessions linked to phishing activities. 

Search by the domain name “*.human*b-cdn.net” in ANY.RUN TI Lookup

These queries provide critical insights into how these domains are leveraged to execute attacks, offering a clear view of the infrastructure behind the phishing campaign.

Try ANY.RUN’s 14-Day Free Trial

With ANY.RUN’s TI Lookup and sandbox working together, you can get a full picture of phishing campaigns and watch them unfold in real-time. 

Sign up for a 14-day free trial to explore how ANY.RUN can assist your threat investigations.

 

The post ANY.RUN Discovers Tricky Phishing Attack Using Fake CAPTCHA appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

Introduction

In today’s digital ecosystem, the expansion of application and API landscapes offers both opportunities and challenges for organizations. Advancements in application development and integration foster unparalleled business agility and innovation but also enlarge the attack surface, creating numerous opportunities for threat actors to exploit. This complexity presents a formidable challenge for IT security teams to maintain visibility and control, ensuring comprehensive protection against increasingly sophisticated adversaries.

The 2024 Application Security Report, based on a detailed survey of over 500 cybersecurity professionals, is aimed at uncovering current trends, challenges, and practices in application security.

Key findings include:

• Application Vulnerability: Half of the respondents report that their applications were compromised in the past year, highlighting the prevalent risk and the critical need for more robust security measures.

• Expertise Gap: Only 19% of security professionals identify as experts in application security, highlighting a significant need for further development of skills among the remaining 81% to effectively counteract cyber threats.

• Visibility Challenges: 45% of participants are not confident in their awareness of all applications used within their organizations, underlining the difficulties in achieving comprehensive application visibility.

• Bot Attack Concerns: 45% raised concerns over their preparedness to defend against sophisticated bots, emphasizing the evolving nature of threats that organizations face.

• Patch Management Hurdles: 40% of respondents acknowledge that they are unable to patch vulnerabilities in a timely manner, leaving organizations vulnerable to attacks.

We sincerely thank Fortinet for their essential contribution to this survey. The insights and best practices derived from this survey highlight the critical areas for organizations to focus their efforts in order to minimize and reduce their attack surface. With the right tools—those capable of discovering and enhancing visibility of digital assets while employing sophisticated measures like machine learning and threat analytics—businesses are better equipped to safeguard applications and APIs against advanced threats.

We trust that our readers will find this report helpful in their journey towards improved application security and in navigating the complexities of modern digital landscapes with confidence.

Thank you,

Holger Schulze

Founder, Cybersecurity Insiders

Application Security Expertise

Application security is a critical part of cybersecurity that demands nuanced expertise to effectively navigate its complexities. Applications are becoming increasingly vulnerable due to the rapid pace of digital transformation and the complexity of modern, cloud-first software development. This environment, rich with APIs and third-party services, opens numerous attack vectors. Furthermore, threat actors’ evolving tactics, such as AI-automated attacks, often outpace organizational security measures and elevate risk.

Only 19% of the survey respondents identify as experts, possessing extensive experience and a profound grasp of application security, including leadership in security projects. 46% of participants have intermediate proficiency in application security, reflecting an understanding and practical engagement with application security measures.

This majority indicates a workforce capable of implementing essential security practices, yet possibly lacking in advanced skills or experience. However, the 35% at the beginner and novice stages highlights a substantial segment that might not yet effectively contribute to safeguarding applications, underscoring a need for targeted upskilling.

To bridge this expertise gap, organizations should prioritize comprehensive training and development for those at the beginner and novice levels. Tailored programs that enhance practical skills and theoretical knowledge in application security will be critical. Furthermore, fostering an environment that encourages collaboration and knowledge exchange among all expertise levels can accelerate the collective advancement towards a more secure application ecosystem.

Confidence in Application Security Posture

Reflecting on the varied levels of application security expertise, it’s also beneficial to examine the confidence levels among cybersecurity professionals regarding their organization’s application security posture. This confidence speaks to both the strength of security measures in place and how well these measures are understood and implemented by the cybersecurity team.

More than half of the survey respondents (53%) report a concerning lack of confidence in their organization’s application security posture, with 35% being only moderately confident and 18% slightly or not at all confident. This suggests a high degree of doubt in the existing application security strategies.

By focusing on state-of-the-art security practices and tools, as well as cybersecurity training, organizations can not only strengthen their application security posture but also enhance the confidence of their cybersecurity professionals in the organization’s overall security strategy.

Prioritizing Application Security Concerns

Cybersecurity professionals’ wide-ranging concerns about application security reflect the complex nature of this challenge and the need for a comprehensive approach to protect applications at all development stages and across different environments.

The top concern is data protection, noted by 43% of respondents (and in the same spot as in our 2021 survey), underlining the continued importance of shielding sensitive information from unauthorized access and breaches. Close behind, 42% emphasize the need for effective threat and breach detection (up from the #4 spot in 2021), highlighting the necessity for advanced monitoring to quickly spot and address threats. Securing cloud applications, a concern for 40%, points to the shift towards cloud environments and their specific security challenges (rising from the #5 spot in 2021). Additional worries include malware defense, mentioned by 35%, and the task of managing an increasing number of vulnerabilities, identified by 31% of participants. This underscores the evolving threat landscape and the need for vigilant vulnerability management.

Organizations should adopt a comprehensive security strategy, integrating advanced technologies like encryption, modern Web Application Firewalls (WAFs), and Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) to enhance data and cloud application security. Embracing DevSecOps principles ensures security is an integral part of the development lifecycle, addressing vulnerabilities in in-house applications. This approach helps tackle key security concerns, fostering a robust and adaptable security posture.

Recent Application Breaches

The frequency and recency of application related security incidents within organizations offer crucial insights into the current cybersecurity landscape and the effectiveness of prevailing security measures.

Notably, 50% of respondents reported an application breach within the last year. This statistic highlights the continuous threat activity and the essential need for effective detection and rapid response. Collectively, It indicates that half of the surveyed organizations have encountered recent security incidents, emphasizing the critical need for improved security measures.

On the other side, 36% experienced breaches between 1-5 years ago, pointing out that while many have avoided recent incidents, the threat of breach remains. The 14% with breaches occurring more than 5 years ago suggests either ongoing security success or potential gaps in detecting newer incidents.

Organizations should thus focus on implementing robust, real-time monitoring and response solutions, including next-generation firewalls, web app and API solutions, and automated security orchestration. Embracing continuous security assessment and a Zero Trust model—verifying every access request—can significantly reduce incident risks.

Common Application Attack Vectors

In the context of recent incidents, understanding the types of attacks against applications sheds light on adversary tactics and informs the creation of targeted defense strategies. The array of attack vectors over the past year reflects the complexity of the threat landscape and the need for a comprehensive security approach.

Malware leads the reported attack vectors at 29%, underscoring the need for robust endpoint protection andup-to-date defenses against malicious software. Following closely, 26% of organizations encountered exploits of software vulnerabilities, highlighting the critical need for continuous vulnerability management and timely patching to mitigate the risk of exploitation.

Stolen credentials, reported by 21% of respondents, underscores the importance of robust authentication mechanisms, including multi-factor authentication (MFA), to prevent unauthorized access. DDoS attacks and information leakage, both at 19%, further illustrate the diverse methods attackers employ to disrupt services and exfiltrate sensitive data, calling for advanced threat detection and data protection solutions.

Cross-site scripting and brute force attacks, each cited by 18% and 17% of participants respectively, alongside application misconfiguration and content spoofing, stress the importance of secure coding practices, comprehensive security assessments, and the deployment of solutions such as Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) to defend against these prevalent threats. These common attack vectors underscore the urgent need for organizations to bolster their security posture through a combination of proactive, AI-driven threat intelligence, real-time monitoring, and the adoption of Zero Trust principles.

Application Hosting Strategies

The choice of hosting environment for applications significantly influences an organization’s operational flexibility, scalability, and security posture. This decision reflects not only technological preferences but also strategic priorities regarding data sovereignty, access control, and threat mitigation.

The largest group of respondents, 38%, reveals a preference for hybrid cloud environments, suggesting a strategic balance between the scalability and innovation offered by cloud services and the control and security associated with on-premises resources. This approach likely reflects an understanding of the nuanced security needs across different hosting environments, as well as a desire to leverage the benefits of both without fully committing to the security and compliance complexities of a cloud-only approach. The on-premises/datacenter model, favored by 23% of organizations, underscores a continued reliance on traditional hosting methods, possibly due to regulatory requirements, data sensitivity concerns, or specific performance needs. While offering greater control over security configurations, this choice requires robust internal security measures and infrastructure maintenance.

Private cloud solutions, selected by 21%, highlight the importance of exclusive resource utilization within a controlled environment, offering a compromise between the scalability of cloud services and the security and control of on premises hosting. Public cloud adoption, at 18%, while the least common response, still represents a significant portion of organizations moving towards fully cloud-based solutions, attracted by their cost-effectiveness, scalability, and the evolving security features offered by cloud providers. In light of the varied attack vectors mentioned earlier, it’s crucial for organizations to tailor their security strategies to their chosen hosting environments. Hybrid and multi-cloud architectures demand sophisticated security orchestration and policy management to ensure consistent security postures across different platforms. For on-premises and private cloud environments, dedicated security controls and vigilant monitoring are paramount. Public cloud users must navigate shared responsibility models, ensuring that their configurations and usage adhere to best security practices. Emphasizing advanced threat protection, data encryption, and identity and access management across all environments can help mitigate the specific risks associated with each hosting model.

Navigating Application Awareness

Ensuring comprehensive awareness of all applications within an organization is crucial for mitigating security risks, especially in the context of shadow IT, where unauthorized applications can introduce vulnerabilities. Only 21% of survey respondents feel very confident in their knowledge of applications used, highlighting either effective control measures or a possible underestimation of their organization’s true application landscape.

Conversely, the 45% indicating varying degrees of uncertainty (somewhat confident to not confident) underscores the challenges shadow IT presents, from bypassing security protocols to complicating compliance. This finding emphasizes the need for strong governance strategies and technologies like application discovery tools to reveal hidden applications.

To curb the risks of shadow IT and enhance organizational security posture, fostering an environment of security consciousness and clear policies for technology adoption is crucial. Initiatives should focus on bridging IT governance with organizational innovation, ensuring a secure and adaptable application environment.

API Inventory Confidence

APIs play a critical role in application integration and communication, yet they introduce unique security challenges and shadow IT risks without careful management and documentation.

A majority (58%) feel confident or very confident in their knowledge of all APIs in their organization, suggesting effective governance and discovery practices in place for these crucial components. This level of assurance suggests robust API management strategies, including the use of API gateways and management platforms to catalog and secure API landscapes. However, this level of assurance could also suggest a degree of overconfidence among cybersecurity professionals, potentially overlooking gaps in their API inventory management.

On the other hand, 42% expressing some doubt or outright lack of confidence underscores the complexities and challenges in achieving complete visibility over their API footprint. This group highlights the potential for shadow APIs—unauthorized or undocumented APIs that can expose organizations to severe security threats due to inadequate oversight.

To tackle these issues, a balanced approach of technology and policy is essential. Organizations should adopt advanced API tools that include discovery for enhanced visibility and security across all APIs. It’s also crucial to foster a culture that emphasizes clear governance around API creation and use, encouraging developers to maintain up-to-date API documentation and reviews. This strategy not only reduces the risks associated with shadow APIs but also bolsters the security infrastructure, ensuring APIs are consistently managed according to security best practices.

Defending Against Sophisticated Bots

The rise of sophisticated, human-like bots marks a significant cybersecurity challenge, where distinguishing between legitimate user interactions and automated, often AI-powered, attacks becomes increasingly difficult. These bots can mimic human behavior, making them particularly effective at evading detection and exploiting vulnerabilities in applications and APIs.

A majority (55%) feel confident or very confident in their ability to defend against such advanced bots. This suggests a high level of optimism or trust in current security measures and strategies to identify and mitigate these threats. However, the 45% who are only somewhat confident or not confident at all reflect the complexities involved in defending against bots that closely emulate human behavior. This concern suggests a recognition of the inadequacy of traditional security measures and a call for more advanced, innovative solutions to adapt to the advancing tactics of automated threats.

To better prepare for human-like bots, leading organizations invest in next-generation security solutions that incorporate advanced machine learning and behavioral analytics. These technologies can analyze patterns of activity to distinguish between genuine users and sophisticated bots. Additionally, fostering a culture of continuous learning and adaptation is crucial, encouraging teams to stay informed about the latest threat vectors and defense mechanisms.

Bot Attack Concerns

In the context of preparing for sophisticated bots, understanding the most concerning bot attacks provides important insight into the threat landscape and guides defense strategies.

Credential stuffing, identified by 49% of respondents, emerges as the tope concern, underscoring the acute awareness of the risks associated with unauthorized access to user accounts. This type of attack leverages stolen username-password pairs (often from a data breach) to gain access to accounts across different services through large-scale automated login requests. Closely following at 47% are DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks. These attacks disrupt service availability, directly impacting business operations and damaging reputations. Card fraud and web scraping attacks, with 35% and 33% respectively, also rank high. Card fraud represents a direct financial threat to organizations and their customers, while web scraping can lead to the loss of intellectual property and competitive advantages, underscoring the broad implications of bot attacks beyond just security breaches.

To mitigate these bot threats, organizations should employ a layered security approach that includes advanced features such as browser fingerprinting, biometric detection, real-time threat intelligence, and comprehensive analytics. Educating users on the importance of secure password practices and implementing multi-factor authentication can further reduce the risk of credential stuffing and other bot-related attacks.

Resources for Vulnerability Management

Swift detection and remediation of application vulnerabilities are key to a secure application landscape, particularly against the backdrop of complex threats, from sophisticated bots to credential stuffing attacks.

Sixty percent of survey respondents, including those agreeing or strongly agreeing, reflect confidence in their organization’s vulnerability management resources. This confidence suggests trust in the effectiveness of their tools, processes, and teams to preemptively address security vulnerabilities.

However, an alarming 40% of organizations say they can’t detect and remediate vulnerabilities in time, leaving organizations exposed. This group reports gaps in their vulnerability management practices, possibly due to constraints in budget, expertise, or technology.

Improving vulnerability management requires strategic investments in both advanced technology and skill development. Organizations should consider leveraging automated security scanning tools, continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines with integrated security checks, and threat intelligence platforms to gain insights into emerging threats. Equally important is fostering a culture of security within development teams, ensuring that security is a priority throughout the application lifecycle, from design to deployment.

Strategies for Application Monitoring

Organizations employ a variety of monitoring techniques to ensure their applications remain resilient against cyber threats. The reliance on firewalls, as indicated by 56% of participants (up from 43% in our 2021 survey), showcases the continued importance of this foundational security measure in protecting applications from unauthorized access and attacks. Meanwhile, 50% of organizations actively monitor applications in production (unchanged since 2021), utilizing threat intelligence to identify and respond to potential security issues in real-time. Endpoint security, mentioned by 36%, highlights the recognition of protecting not just the application environment but also the devices accessing these applications that could serve as entry points for attackers.

To further enhance application security monitoring, organizations should consider integrating security solutions like Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) and automated vulnerability scanning tools. These technologies, coupled with a robust security culture that emphasizes the importance of security at every stage of the application lifecycle, can provide a comprehensive defense mechanism against potential threats.

Adopting WAF Protection

The deployment of Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) across both on-premise and cloud environments is a vital part of modern cybersecurity strategies. A majority of organizations, 67%, use WAFs (up from 46% in 2021), which underscores their effectiveness in safeguarding applications from a wide range of threats, including SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and other sophisticated attacks that target the application layer.

This high WAF adoption rate reflects a strategic approach to application security and the necessity to protect assets regardless of their deployment environment. This security posture is essential, especially with the rise of hybrid cloud models, ensuring consistent protection across diverse infrastructures.

For the 33% not currently utilizing WAFs, adopting this technology presents an opportunity to strengthen their security framework. Integrating a WAF into security architectures provides an additional layer of defense, offering real-time threat analysis and mitigation capabilities.

A staggering 90% of survey respondents highlight the importance of Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) in securing API workloads, an increase from 79% in 2021, signaling a shift in application security priorities. This consensus reflects a recognition of WAFs’ role in countering modern cyber threats. With APIs serving as vital channels for data exchange and application functionality, they increasingly attract cyber attacks due to their widespread use, potential vulnerabilities, and access to sensitive data.

Ensuring that WAFs can effectively interpret and protect API traffic has become essential to address these security challenges head-on.

API Security Strategies

The survey responses reveal varied approaches to API security, emphasizing the importance of tailored solutions to protect these critical interfaces. API access controls like OAuth, used by 47% of respondents, underscores the importance of robust authentication to restrict API interactions to authorized entities.

Additionally, 44% of organizations rely on application-native security measures, such as API keys and rate limiting, indicating a decentralized approach to safeguarding against abuse. Meanwhile, 37% incorporate API gateway features into their security infrastructure, such as WAFs, to strengthen API protection through network-level controls. The adoption of dedicated API gateways by 28% and API discovery tools by 18% reflects strategies aimed at managing API interactions and uncovering APIs across the digital ecosystem, respectively.

This array of API security measures illustrates the comprehensive and layered defense mechanisms organizations deploy to navigate the complexities of API security more effectively.

Application Security Best Practices

In the face of evolving cyber threats, fortifying application security has never been more important. Below are essential best practices derived from industry insights and survey findings, designed to empower cybersecurity professionals with actionable strategies for enhancing their organization’s defense mechanisms against sophisticated attacks.

IMPLEMENT ROBUST AUTHENTICATION & ACCESS CONTROLS:

Deploy mechanisms like OAuth and multi-factor authentication to ensure application access is restricted to authorized users and systems.

DEPLOY WEB APPLICATION FIREWALLS (WAFS):

Utilize WAFs to protect both on-premise and cloud-hosted applications from a range of threats, aligning with our findings that 67% of organizations use WAFs for comprehensive protection.

SECURE APIS VIGOROUSLY:

Choose a WAF that discovers and protects your APIs as well as your web applications. The significant concern for protecting API workloads is confirmed by 90% of organizations.

MONITOR APPLICATIONS & UTILIZE THREAT INTELLIGENCE ACTIVELY:

Keep a vigilant eye on application performance and potential security threats in real time, a practice adopted by 49% of organizations.

ENCRYPT SENSITIVE DATA DILIGENTLY:

Protect sensitive data through encryption both in transit and at rest. Prioritizing the protection of data, as 43% of respondents did, is crucial in safeguarding against breaches and ensuring privacy.

ASSESS VULNERABILITIES & APPLY PATCHES REGULARLY:

Conduct continuous vulnerability assessments and apply patches promptly to address security flaws.

IMPLEMENT RATE LIMITING & API KEYS:

Utilize rate limiting and API keys for each application to prevent abuse and ensure secure API usage, as indicated by the 44% of organizations that rely on application centric security controls.

DEVELOP A SECURITY-FOCUSED CULTURE:

Foster a security-aware culture within the organization, emphasizing the importance of security best practices across all roles involved in application development, deployment, and use.

By adhering to these best practices, cybersecurity professionals can significantly enhance the security posture of their application footprint, effectively mitigating risks and ensuring a resilient defense against the evolving threat landscape.

Methodology and Demographics

The 2024 Application Security Report is based on a comprehensive global survey of 507 cybersecurity professionals conducted in February 2024, to uncover how cloud user organizations are adopting the cloud, how they see cloud security evolving, and what best practices IT cybersecurity leaders are prioritizing in their move to the cloud. The respondents range from technical executives to IT security practitioners, representing a balanced cross-section of organizations of varying sizes across multiple industries.

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Fortinet (NASDAQ: FTNT) secures the largest enterprises, services providers, and government organizations around the world. Fortinet empowers our customers with complete visibility and control across the expanding attack surface and the power to take on ever-increasing performance requirements today and into the future. Only the Fortinet Security Fabric platform can address the most critical security challenges and protect data across the entire digital infrastructure, whether in networks, application, multi-cloud, or edge environments. Fortinet ranks #1 as the company with the most security appliances shipped worldwide and more than 730,000 customers trust Fortinet to protect their businesses. www.fortinet.com

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Cybersecurity Insiders brings together 600,000+ IT security professionals and world-class technology vendors to facilitate smart problem-solving and collaboration in tackling today’s most critical cybersecurity challenges.

Our approach focuses on creating and curating unique content that educates and informs cybersecurity professionals about the latest cybersecurity trends, solutions, and best practices. From comprehensive research studies and unbiased product reviews to practical e-guides, engaging webinars, and educational articles – we are committed to providing resources that provide evidence-based answers to today’s complex cybersecurity challenges.

Contact us today to learn how Cybersecurity Insiders can help you stand out in a crowded market and boost demand, brand visibility, and thought leadership presence. 

Email us at info@cybersecurity-insiders.com or visit cybersecurity-insiders.com

 

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The Governance Risk and Compliance (GRC) platform market is predicted to see healthy growth for the next five years. A recent market report forecasts a CAGR of 13.64% through 2028. This growth indicates that enterprises acknowledge the importance of GRC as they encounter new risks and deal with a stricter regulatory landscape.

Notably, GRC solutions are evolving with the changes in cybersecurity risks and regulations. They offer a host of functions to help enterprises undertake operations and resource governance, risk management, and compliance oversight more efficiently. These solutions are often marketed as GRC automation tools, but they usually come with capabilities that go beyond automation.

Cypago, for one, is known for being an enterprise cyber GRC automation solution. However, this SaaS offering actually has several features that significantly enhance compliance oversight and other GRC tasks. Here’s a look at some Cypago features that make GRC significantly easier for organizations.

Code-Free Automation Workflows

The automation of cyber compliance management tasks involves a meticulous process that includes data integration, the identification and analysis of risks, policy and issue management, reporting and analytics, and the configuration of the software tool being used. Things become even more challenging when coding is a must to get things automated.

Cypago addresses this difficulty through no-code automation workflows. Cypago provides a flexible and intuitive interface for orchestrating tasks or workflows that match the specific requirements of an organization. This innovation in security and compliance management empowers enterprises to automate security controls, including the collection of data and security monitoring. 

Many aspects of addressing compliance gaps can be addressed on the spot, using integrated controls or rule-based automation flows, while others can be assigned to relevant team members using platform-native project management modules which sync with third-party tracking systems like Jira and Monday.

Cypago also enables organizations to create bespoke cyber GRC programs and controls. This system provides the means to dynamically customize processes and policies, which are optimized to aptly address specific requirements in different systems. It ensures a fine-tuned security approach that includes context-aware rules and precise risk identification.

Seamless Integration with SaaS, IaaS, and PaaS Tools

Cypago takes advantage of cutting-edge technologies such as SSO and OAuth to enable seamless integration with SaaS, IaaS, and PaaS tools. It can connect with a wide range of tools, from 1Password to AWS and Zendesk, to simplify governance and compliance oversight. The process does not require any coding knowledge. 

Cypago has a one-click connection mechanism, wherein users simply have to choose from a list of supported integrations. This integration is important because of the growing adoption of “as a service” tools as organizations become increasingly digital, so having the ability to effortlessly collect and consolidate compliance evidence from so many sources is extremely helpful.

Cypago’s integrations also help cyber GRC teams to gain visibility into aspects of compliance that would otherwise be impossible. For example, scanning code for compliance issues is easier when you can automate a data sync with your GitLab libraries and Azure DevOps server, and user access reviews are simplified when you can automate a data sync with identity platforms like Okta and HR information systems like Hibob.

Custom Frameworks to Match Varying Requirements

Organizations rarely have the same requirements when it comes to their governance and risk management. Your company may need to adhere to frameworks related to your industry (HIPAA, PCI DSS), your geo-market (SOX ITGC, GDPR) or the tech you use (NIST AI RMF). You might also decide to take on additional frameworks (ISO 27018, SOC 2) as a means to signal your adherence to strict safety measures. 

Some of these frameworks may have overlapping requirements, while there may be other controls that your team sees as necessary but aren’t included in the third-party frameworks you care about. That’s why it’s important to come up with custom policies to properly address specific needs and objectives. 

For this, Cypago works with tailor-made security frameworks, enabling organizations to upload and integrate custom security plans to ascertain that the GRC an organization implements is the GRC it needs.

Cypago acts as a platform for open compliance, or a way to expand compliance capabilities. While Cypago already supports several pre-installed standards and frameworks, you can also add or build out new frameworks, regulations, or standards that your team deems applicable to address specific concerns. This feature is particularly important given the rapid evolution of cyber threats and regulations. If there are new regulations or anticipated risks, all that is needed is to upload the corresponding new controls.

Robust Risk Management with Intelligent Gap Analysis

One crucial step in GRC is the identification of the differences or gaps between the existing and ideal states of an organization’s governance, risk management, and compliance. It is important to know if an organization has achieved its goals and detect the areas where it needs more work to reach or approximate its ideal state.

Cypago’s intelligence gap analysis engine is designed to automatically spot security gaps across all of the SaaS tools used by an organization as well as the security infirmities in the cloud environments you work with. Cypago lets the security team define the risks or threats that should be detected and the system automatically undertakes meticulous cyber monitoring and management with an eye on long-term security compliance and unhindered business operations.

There’s no need to scramble at audit time. The platform’s intelligence gap analysis operates as part of a broader risk management system that aims to stop risky activities and ensure full security compliance. It is linked to continuous monitoring and effective mitigation mechanisms to maximize the benefits of automatic security gap identification.

Continuous Control Monitoring 

The current threat landscape makes it clear that periodic security testing or scanning is no longer enough. It is important to undertake continuous monitoring to keep up with the increasing aggressiveness and sophistication of modern-day threats. This is why new cybersecurity terms such as continuous threat exposure management (CTEM) have been introduced. There is a need to continuously track and manage cyber hygiene across all environments.

Cypago affords organizations the continuous security control monitoring needed to avoid getting blindsided by new threats. The platform ceaselessly tracks critical controls and generates timely findings as well as actionable insights to help organizations address risks and threats before they turn into actual attacks or compromises. This is a form of proactive threat management and mitigation every organization should consider adopting.

Cypago provides real-time security visibility through its Continuous Control Monitoring (CCM) feature, which covers different security control domains, including data security and confidentiality, the management of user identities and access, and response to security incidents. CCM also extends into the monitoring of the Software Development Life Cycle to make sure that apps are checked against GRC objectives before they are deployed.

Moreover, Cypago provides customized reporting and comprehensive analytics. It features intuitive dashboards that make it easy to generate custom reports and useful insights to accurately evaluate compliance and operational needs.

In Conclusion

Cyber GRC is not an optional concern for modern organizations. To achieve sensible operational and resource governance, risk management, and compliance, it is important to use a reliable GRC tool that enables efficient and continuous monitoring, custom automation, strong risk management functions, integration with existing tools, and compatibility with custom security frameworks and standards.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) is fast transforming modern businesses, they are now beginning to understand the importance of risk and compliance – not only as regulatory checkboxes but as critical components of successful AI integration.

Historically, these activities have been sidelined, as they often seem to lack direct value or innovation. However, AI’s growing role has changed the game, creating a compelling reason for IT departments to address risk and compliance with renewed focus and urgency.

Preparing for AI readiness requires a solid framework that can manage data integrity, security, and compliance, ensuring that organisations maintain control and mitigate risks effectively. Here are some critical steps to consider.

Defining your data estate

AI’s effectiveness relies on well-organised, accessible data. The first step toward readiness is defining your data estate, a process that involves cataloguing all data sources, locations, and formats across the organisation.

With AI’s ability to process and analyse large datasets, an incomplete or poorly mapped data landscape could result in inaccurate insights or overlooked assets. Identifying all data points also reveals hidden risks, from compliance liabilities to potential vulnerabilities, allowing organisations to address these proactively.

Completing cloud migration

Cloud environments have become the standard for handling modern AI tools, given their superior data management capabilities compared to traditional on-premises systems. Migrating to the cloud enables organisations to leverage mature, built-in tools for data governance and policy management, as well as scalable computing power essential for AI applications.

Argantic, a renowned Microsoft Solutions Partner within the Turrito group of companies, recognises this shift in infrastructure as it partners with, a respected Microsoft Solutions Partner, to provide enhanced cloud support. This partnership helps internal IT teams with the complex task of cloud migration, from design and implementation to ongoing optimisation and support.

Ensuring proper data access controls

One of AI’s unique capabilities is to turn ordinary users into “super searchers,” allowing them to uncover data they may not have previously accessed or known about. Consequently, establishing proper data access controls becomes vital. By limiting access to only the data each user needs, organisations reduce the risk of sensitive information being inadvertently exposed or misused.

This step not only safeguards proprietary data but also ensures compliance with data protection regulations, such as GDPR, as AI-driven searches can lead to unexpected privacy implications if unmanaged.

Defining data loss, sharing, and retention policies

AI’s integration into day-to-day operations brings increased attention to data handling policies. Data loss prevention, controlled data sharing, and retention policies must be well-defined and directly tied to data files, enabling these policies to persist as data moves within or outside the organisation.

Properly applied data policies help maintain data integrity, reduce the risk of leaks, and ensure that outdated or unnecessary data is systematically purged, avoiding clutter and compliance violations.

Addressing shadow AI usage

As companies test the waters with new AI tools, a common trend has emerged: senior staff experimenting with these tools outside of IT’s oversight. This ‘shadow AI’ activity, while innovative, raises serious concerns over unauthorised access to sensitive data and unmonitored data movement.

Companies are increasingly reaching out to experts like Argantic for assistance in creating safe boundaries for AI tools, ensuring that any exploration remains within compliance guidelines.

Empowering internal IT teams for the AI-driven future

For internal IT teams tasked with managing these changes, the burden can be significant. AI adoption places extra demands on teams that may already be stretched thin, dealing with legacy systems that are costly and rigid.

Offering specialised Microsoft and compliance expertise, Argantic empowers internal IT departments with the agility they need to handle the increasing complexities of AI, cloud migrations, and data governance.

Garry Ackerman, Argantic director, noted the advantage of providing tailored support to mid-market organisations that may lack extensive in-house resources. “Through this partnership, internal IT teams gain access to skills and support only as needed, ensuring they can focus on core activities without being sidetracked by ongoing AI management and compliance projects.”

AI adoption is a powerful tool for innovation, but it introduces risks that business leaders must be prepared to manage. Addressing these risks head-on with a comprehensive compliance and data governance framework will pave the way for successful AI integration.

As the company illustrates, the right partnerships can strengthen IT teams and set a strong foundation for the future, empowering organisations to fully harness AI’s potential within a safe, compliant, and well-managed environment.

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