Managed Security Services

Regardless of the size of your business, every year the threat landscape continues to grow and evolve. In 2020, compromised data records exceeded 37 billion – a staggering number that only considers the 51% of reported breaches which provided a confirmed number of records. This alone is a 141% increase over 2019^[1]. Factoring in unreported attacks and unconfirmed records, that number grows exponentially.

In April 2021, Apple suffered “one of the worst security vulnerabilities to affect the tech giant’s computers in years” with hackers utilizing malware that “effectively takes Mac security back a decade.”^[2]. This is just further evidence that even the largest of companies are vulnerable to these attacks.

No company or industry is free from the concern of a data breach and your intellectual property is too important to allow your IT security policy on autopilot. Malicious online entities are consistently attempting to expose and exploit the vulnerabilities of even the largest content platforms. The only way to protect the personal and sensitive data of your business, employees, and customers is to implement a comprehensive security strategy. Constant infrastructure monitoring and automated, timely updates are the bare minimum every organization should be doing. Utilizing the expertise and experience of an MSSP (Managed Security Services Provider) can be the most cost-effective and efficient way to take a proactive approach to security for many businesses.

What are Managed Services, and Managed Security Services?

Managed Services is a term used to describe contracted or outsourced information technology services. Companies offering these services are considered a Managed Services Providers (MSP)

Much the same, Managed Security Services describes contracted or outsourced information security services. Companies offering these services are considered a Managed Security Services Providers (MSSP)

In both cases, the organization seeking the service is typically looking to replace an in-house IT department, bring IT professionals into the organization for the first time, or bolster their existing IT resources.

Partnering with Coast Technologies will prevent and mitigate the damage from a multitude of attacks, including these common occurrences.

Brute Force Attack

A brute force attack is the digital equivalent of trying to open a lock with every key in your junk drawer until you find the one that works. Hackers use software to try thousands of passwords rapidly and automatically to gain access to the sensitive data on your computer or network. Business owners and employees who use simple passwords, personal information (birthdays, names, teams), or words that can be found in a dictionary make it easier for a hacker to identify your password and steal or interfere with stored information.

Using a complex, unique password protected by a Multi Factor Authentication Provider Such as Microsoft Authenticator, Google Authenticator, or Duo adds an additional layer of protection against brute force attacks, and can often alert a user when an unsuccessful attempt to access their account has been made. Many users are reluctant to create such passwords due to the inconvenience caused when they forget them. To allay this concern, Coast Technologies recommends that both consumers and businesses implement Password Management Software such as LastPass which allows users to securely store all their passwords and access them from any device. password managers make it more feasible to use long, unique, and complex passwords which are much harder, or virtually impossible for a hacker to identify.

DDoS Attacks

Imagine you are a server at a restaurant. While carrying an order to a table, a bunch of other servers rapidly pile their orders onto your tray as you scramble to keep anything from falling. Two customers move to stand directly in your path in a narrow aisleway. A group nearby starts shouting demands for dishes the restaurant does not make. All this physical and mental stimulus prevents you from delivering your original order to your table and they leave due to lack of service. This is representative of a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack. A DDoS attack is one with the intent to interrupt or prevent your business from providing a service. Network connections, telephony, and other services could be interrupted, access to the business website could be dramatically slowed or restricted, or targeted transactions halted by hackers using a network of devices that can all be controlled remotely to carry out an attack.

Nearly all DDoS attacks involve overwhelming the victim’s network with traffic. There are three primary types of attack, each targeting a different aspect of a network connection.

• Application layer attacks open connections, processes, and transactions that tie up resources such as disk space and memory. An HTTP flood is a type of application layer attack that involves overwhelming a company’s server(s) with massive numbers of rapid requests to access a webpage or website. The server, unable to respond to such a high volume of website traffic, slows or even fails to load the requested pages resulting in a denial of service.
• Protocol attacks are meant to use up the processing ability of a network’s infrastructure. An SYN Flood is an example of a protocol attack during which hackers will tie up the target’s resources by generating requests to create a network connection. The target’s machine responds to the request but never receives confirmation from the malicious machine to finalize the connection. This causes the target server to keep open a slew of unaccepted requests that eventually overwhelm the server, often causing it to crash, resulting in a denial of service.
• Volumetric attacks generate a massive volume of illegitimate traffic to prevent the victim’s network from sending or receiving legitimate traffic. In DNS amplification, for example, the attacker sends a multitude of relatively small requests that will generate an answer composed of a massive amount of information but, instead of the attacker receiving that answer, it is redirected back to the victim’s server rendering it inaccessible to genuine traffic and thus, creating the denial of service.

Regardless of the type of DDoS attack, the attack traffic can be difficult to distinguish from a surge in normal traffic. Additionally, many hackers will use not just one but a mix of these varying forms of DDoS attack, making it especially difficult to protect against.

Having proper threat response system, like Sophos’ Managed Threat Response in place not only helps to identify these attacks – they can outright stop them in their tracks. Coast Technologies ensures your infrastructure is always protected, and your response, and mitigation plans are routinely evaluated to remain up to date as attacks and methods evolve.

Malware

Malware is a blanket term used to describe any piece of software which aims to intentionally harm or disrupt systems or networks. Viruses, Ransomware, Scareware, Worms, Adware/Spyware, and Fileless Malware are all types of malicious software.

Malware can, among other things, be used to gain access to private information, take control of the target’s computer for illicit purposes, or hold the target computer’s content hostage. The goal of malware is often to generate profit for the hacker(s) as well as possible corporate or political sabotage. These types of attacks come in many forms; most are voluntarily, though unwittingly, uploaded to a computer system by users who open unsolicited emails, follow links to malicious sites, or download questionable third-party software from un-trusted sources.

The ease with which a computer user can accidentally infect their system with malware is unknown to most, and mind-boggling to many when they experience it themselves. This unfortunate reality necessitates the need for a comprehensive organizational security policy. Above all else, we recommend implementing an ongoing Security Awareness Training (#TODO INSERT LINK) program for users at every level of an organization, from the entry level to the executive team. If you are looking for a solution that can meet those needs without breaking the bank, there is nowhere to turn but KnowBe4.

Coast Technologies implements KnowBe4’s products as a standard offering for all clients because we believe that well-informed employees are the best first line defense for any organization.

*Want to stay ahead of the curve? Have a friend who always gets “hacked”? We recommend KnowBe4’s Home Training Program*

_{* We believe KnowBe4’s products and services are invaluable, thus so we recommend them to everyone we know. We receive no payment, referral bonus, discount or incentives of any kind for these referrals.}

Protect Your Online Data

Proactive remediation of security vulnerabilities as soon as they are known is paramount to keeping organizations of all sizes secure. We ensure your systems are monitored, patched, and protected before threats take your site offline, expose intellectual property or other sensitive data, saving you thousands or millions of dollars in damages.

Coast Technologies Tests and Protects Your Network

Coast Technologies will test your network on an ongoing basis to determine how vulnerable it may be. Our KnowBe4 Security Awareness Testing and Training will identify who in your organization may be the most prone to social engineering, allowing us to reinforce critical security principles, fostering a more security aware environment where you can focus on business, instead of worrying about who is letting hackers walk right through the door..

Sources

_{[1] Despite 1,923 breaches (49%) without a confirmed number of records exposed, the total number of records compromised in 2020 exceeded 37 billion, a 141% increase compared to 2019 and by far the most records exposed in a single year since we have been reporting on data breach activity. https://www.govtech.com/blogs/lohrmann-on-cybersecurity/2020-data-breaches-point-to-cybersecurity-trends-for-2021.html}

_{[2] The hacks effectively take Mac security back a decade, according to Patrick Wardle, a former NSA analyst and a macOS security expert, who described it as one of the worst security issues to have ever hit the Apple operating system. Malicious hackers can and have created malware that, though unsigned, is misclassified by Apple’s operating system, thanks to a logic error in macOS’ code. That means malware can skip all the checks done by Apple’s security mechanisms like Gatekeeper and File Quarantine, which are designed to stop any unapproved, dangerous apps from running. https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomasbrewster/2021/04/26/update-your-mac-now-the-worst-hack-in-years-hits-apple-computers/?sh=453d67d25da0}