WatchPoint Solutions Blog

Ransomware can be disastrous for any business that gets hit by it, but not always in the way that you might expect. It might threaten business continuity and compromise data security, but it can also directly impact the way that the public views your company. In fact, the decision you make about whether or not to pay the ransom can be a major deciding factor in whether a customer will stick with you.

With cybercrime more prevalent than ever, the importance of keeping your business protected cannot be overstated. In fact, it is so important that there’s a C-suite level role dedicated to it: the Chief Information Security Officer—the CISO. While such a position is fairly common amongst enterprise organizations, smaller businesses might not be able to implement this role in their own hierarchy… at least, not without assistance.

Digital transformation—or the integration of digital technology into all aspects of operations—has been a hot topic of consideration for businesses of all sizes. Let’s consider how you should approach your transformative processes as you work to keep your business competitive with those who are also embracing technology.

Penetration testing is a term that you often hear about, but won’t really understand it unless it is completely explained to you. Well, you’re in luck because in today’s blog we will explain what penetration testing is and why it is important for data and network security and maintaining compliance with regulatory requirements that your organization operates under. 

Today’s business world is subject to countless scams and cybersecurity threats, and it’s your job to ensure that your company does not fall victim to these scams and con artists. How can you be sure that the many messages you receive on a regular basis are actually from legitimate sources and not from someone out to make a profit off your business? To put it simply, awareness is the key.

There are many ways that hackers have attempted to subvert the advanced security precautions implemented by enterprises and small businesses alike, but some of the more recent and crafty ones include sending threats through seemingly legitimate sources, like social media. The latest in this string of attacks includes Google Docs, and it is problematic for a number of reasons.

One of the most dangerous threats out there is ransomware, and for good reason. In many cases, the problems from ransomware can have far-reaching and devastating consequences for businesses, no matter which industry they operate in. Let’s take a look at why ransomware is so problematic and what you can do to stop it.

A lot of people shop predominantly online nowadays, especially after the holidays (gotta use those gift cards). However, hackers anticipate this, and they will use every tool at their disposal to try and scam you out of your hard-earned cash. What can you do to stay safe?

Smart devices and other oddities that connect to the Internet—those which fall into the Internet-of-Things category of devices—are all over the place these days, be they inside our offices or our homes. Smart devices that connect to the Internet for various purposes should generally be approached with a minimum level of cautiousness, especially in today’s age of cyberattacks.

The holiday season has a variety of famous key players, including the likes of Santa, Rudolph, and the rest of the North Pole crew. Each year, they use their magic to help spread goodwill and joy to all the nice children of the world… but did you know that they are also responsible for protecting those who make the naughty list from Santa’s villainous counterpart, Krampus?

As the official managed service provider for Santa’s operation, we have been cleared to share the story about how we’ve helped defy Krampus to save Christmas.

A critical, widespread vulnerability was just discovered, and this one is a very big deal. In fact, Log4j is one of the worst vulnerabilities we’ve seen, period. Your business needs to be aware of it, and you absolutely need to take measures to prevent it.

There are many cybersecurity threats out there, but the one that has cemented itself in the minds of business owners in recent years is ransomware. Ransomware encrypts data on the victim’s devices, forcing them to pay a ransom for the decryption key. As you might imagine, this practice is quite lucrative for cybercriminals—some more than others, of course.

Cyberwarfare has continued to evolve in sophisticated ways, and while security researchers try their best to keep up, hackers are always trying to outdo them. One example of such attacks, which are often sponsored by government agencies, is a recent attack on the United States and Israeli technology sectors, which have become the target of password spraying campaigns.

The past few years have been nothing if not tumultuous for businesses of all shapes and sizes, which has only exacerbated the shifting terrain we’d expect to see in a business’ cybersecurity needs and threats. Let’s take a few moments to examine what 2022’s cybersecurity landscape is likely to look like, considering what we’ve seen recently.

You’ve no doubt seen the concept of “streaming” online at some point or another, whether it’s consuming content on Netflix or Youtube. However, content creators with an established fan base can stream their content on Twitch to make a living. If you have ever wondered how much some of these creators make, well, a recent hack has exposed this information and created a whole kerfuffle that must be addressed by Amazon.

Yet another major vulnerability has been discovered, this time in Microsoft’s MSHTML browser engine. The vulnerability, discovered and tracked by Kaspersky, is currently being exploited all over the world. As such, it is critical that you know how to avoid vulnerabilities like this so that you do not inadvertently allow a hacker onto your network.

If we told you that it is possible for others to hire hackers to launch attacks against your business, would you believe it? Well, we hope so, because it is very possible and more common than you might think. Comparitech launched an investigation into the average prices of various hacking services on the Dark Web, and you might be surprised by how affordable and accessible they are. This is just more reason to take network security seriously.

Artificial intelligence, also known as AI, is already used in certain industries, like cybersecurity and automation, but hackers have quickly found out that they too can leverage AI to their advantage. With cybercrime on the rise, it’s expected that AI will play a role in the cybersecurity landscape to come. Let’s take a closer look at some of these trends.

We know that cybersecurity isn’t the most interesting topic in the world, especially for a small business owner, this doesn’t diminish its importance. If you fail to adequately protect your business, even a low-profile SMB can fall victim to a cyber threat. It’s your job as the business owner and thought leader to make sure this doesn’t happen.

The cloud can be a huge part of any successful business, so long as you are able to keep control over it and utilize it to your business’ advantage. Centralized authority over your organization’s cloud access controls is critical to keeping it safe and functional. Let’s go over what this means and how you can achieve it.