- kind of electronic signatures but harder to obtain.
- They follow a specific protocol, called Public Key Infrastructure(PKI) and require a certificate issued by Certificate Authority(CA) that can prove the identities of signers and validate the signatures.
- hold higher levels of trustworthiness and authenticity than eSignatures. So they are often used for more significant transactions.
Digital signatures
- named as online signatures are a broader concept than digital signatures.
- use digital symbols to give legal authorization or approval for online transactions and agreements, which are the virtual alternatives to ink-on-paper signatures.
Electronic signatures
common cybersecurity threats
- Malware Attacks
- Phishing Scams
- Data Breaches
- Ransomware
- Social Engineering
can go undetected for a prolonged period, leading to continuous exploitation of the compromised system
Malware
refers to any software intentionally designed to cause damage to a computer, server, client, or computer network
Malware
Malware includes:
- viruses,
- worms,
- Trojans,
- ransomware,
- spyware
- adware
Once malware enters a system, it can
- corrupt files,
- steal sensitive data,
- gain unauthorized access to the system.
The potential impact of a malware attack is significant
- system damage
- data loss
- severe financial losses
are fraudulent attempts to obtain sensitive information such as usernames, passwords, and credit card details by disguising oneself as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication
Phishing Scams
typically involves a fake email or website that mimics a reputable organisation.
Phishing Scams
The potential impact of a successful phishing scam
- identity theft,
- financial loss
- unauthorized access to systems
Data breaches can lead to a wide range of damaging effects
- financial loss,
- brand reputation damage,
- intellectual property loss,
- potential legal penalties
Ransomware can cause
- halt operations until the issue is resolved
- cost of the ransom demanded
- severe financial losses
tactic that adversaries use to trick you into revealing sensitive information. They can solicit a monetary payment or gain access to your confidential data.
Social Engineering
be combined with any of the threats listed above to make you more likely to click on links, download malware, or trust a malicious source.
Social Engineering
The impact of social engineering
- data breaches,
- financial loss,
- compromise in personal or business integrity.
Common Vulnerabilities that exists in Cybersecurity
- Weak or stolen credentials
- Lack of encryption
- Misconfigurations
- Out-of-date software
- Zero day
- Poor input sanitization
- Insider threats
- Unauthorized access
- Vulnerable API
- Many people fail to create strong and unique passwords for each of their accounts.
- They often resort to poor password habits, such as reusing the same passwords across multiple accounts and creating weak ones that are easy to remember.
- Cybercriminals take advantage of weak login credentials and launch cyber attacks like brute force attacks that can steal these weak passwords.
Weak or stolen credentials
If an organization doesn’t adequately encrypt its data, cybercriminals can intercept transmitted data, steal it and possibly use it to gain unauthorized access or plant malicious code, such as ransomware.
Lack of encryption
- occur when network assets have vulnerable settings or disparate security controls.
- Systems that require manual configuration can have errors and gaps if improperly configured.
- Cybercriminals look for these misconfigurations to exploit and gain unauthorized access
Misconfigurations
- Cybercriminals look for any bugs or flaws within software.
- They can exploit these flaws to gain unauthorized access and steal any sensitive data.
- However, updating software regularly will patch most flaws or bugs, particularly known vulnerabilities that cybercriminals are most likely to exploit.
- If an organization is running out-of-date software, it is susceptible to cyber threats.
Out-of-date software
- vulnerabilities are software vulnerabilities that organizations and software vendors don’t yet know exist; therefore, they haven’t been patched.
- dangerous because there is no defense against them until someone discovers them.
- That someone can be an ethical security researcher – or a threat actor.
Zero day
- process of checking and filtering input data to ensure it does not contain malicious code that could damage a system.
- Cybercriminals look for systems with poor input sanitization to inject malicious code that grants them access.
Poor input sanitization
When users fall for phishing attacks or practice poor password hygiene, cybercriminals can compromise their login credentials. After compromising a user’s login credentials, cybercriminals can gain unauthorized access to an organization’s network.
Human error
