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INSIGHT: Cyber criminals now target networks at small businesses |
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By Mike Vetter For the Sioux Falls Business Journal
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Tuesday, 12 June 2007 |
In today’s cyber world, Internet criminals are smarter, more agile and work in a world of smoke and mirrors. Their target: unprotected computer networks.
In the past, these criminals used viruses and worms to work their way into computer systems. These viruses slowed computers down and caused obvious problems. They were annoying but easily identified.
Today’s threats are much more subtle. Hackers now organize into for-profit crime rings. Social security numbers and Internet banking passwords are sold on the criminal identity-theft marketplace.
In the past, these criminals have targeted large corporate networks. Recently, however, there has been an increasing number of small businesses that have been targeted. This is because small businesses are using computers to manage an increasing amount of transactions. The more information that is available, the more juicy the target for cyber criminals.
How can these criminals be stopped? An existing technology, known as intrusion prevention, is now affordable to small businesses. This technology has an intelligent engine that detects hacker-like activity before it enters a computer system. This gives a business advance warning that there is a threat to their data system.
Systems can be designed to monitor an entire computer network or a single machine.
Without intrusion prevention and monitoring, criminals could attempt hacking into your network for months or years with no visible signs. Data can be stolen for years before the criminal attempts to use that information for identity theft or other forms of corporate espionage.
If your business uses computers for communicating confidential information, financial transactions or any type of legal documents, you could be at risk. Preventing a security breach is a small cost compared to the lawsuits and loss of credibility that can result from losing customer or corporate data.
Vetter is president of DataSync
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