The State Of Cyber Security: We’re All Screwed

If your first thought was Mr. Robot when you read the title, then you know where this article is headed. The internet, given its nature of being open ended, has many security flaws despite attempts to make it impenetrable to troublemakers. The biggest challenge during a cyber-attack is identifying the attacker. Most skilled hackers enter undetected and do not leave a trail behind. Going after them, most often is as futile as chasing a ghost. The matter of cybersecurity thus becomes more important.

The attacker is not necessarily a socially awkward, god complexed coding mastermind, but sadistic troublemakers or organized cybercriminal gangs or even the government in the name of national security.

While the increasing threat of cyber hacks doesn’t dent the government’s armor, we common citizens have a lot at stake. Most of us make monetary transactions online and in order to protect our interest, the government suggests that we become more security savvy. We are either uninterested in acquiring this protective skill or are just not up to it.

We’re screwed either way

The most common trap for cyber goons is crypto-ransomware. This software encrypts the whole data stored in the user’s machine making it inaccessible. This malware accounts for almost 3/4^th of all the infections. Such Malware bytes also demand payments as ransom to unlock the information. On failing to make the payment, all the stored files are deleted. Hackers have become smarter over the years. They’ve finally realized that instead of going through the grueling drill of phishing for passwords, identity or information theft, an easier route is to block access. The business that is threatened not becomes an ATM instead of a potential profit. The cyber goons responsible for CryptoWall3 malware got richer by $325 million. When threatened, most victims find it easier to pay up then backup data periodically. We have become our worst enemy. The preventive measures haven’t changed- do not divulge your bank details, use stronger passwords that your initials and birth-date/anniversary, keep updating the software and report anything suspicious immediately.

What can be changed?

There is no change in the horizon unless customers follow every security advice they are given. Data encryption by most of the large companies like Facebook, WhatsApp and Apple is the step in the right direction. Encryption of data ensures that it is inaccessible to the bad guys and the good guys (government?). The US government is pressurizing these companies to relax their encryption standards (the crypto-war). The only likely solution is if the federal agencies recreate engineering solutions specific for the current security problems