Cyber Horror Stories From the Past Year

The eerie cyber season is upon us now, the time of year when the cyber ghouls are out looking for our data. This past year has been exceedingly spooky with major organizations being taken advantage of the cyber undead.  With this being Cyber Awareness Month we’d like to review a few of these attacks with you so that they can become part of your zombie security survival guide when the cyber apocalypse is pointed in your direction. Stay alert; you never know when these monstrosities will come after you next. Here are a few stories from the past year that will give you goosebumps.

We’ve noticed that 2015 is the year of the healthcare breach. These monsters have targeted healthcare over the past 12 months with wild abandon. Whether it is Anthem, Blue Cross, UCLA or any other casualty, these monsters have the taste for healthcare and want more of it. The industry as a whole has taken this very serious after seeing their peers eaten alive and is making strides to securing what they can before it’s too late. There is never a safe place from these beasts, but over the past 12 months the sea change in thinking for healthcare has been eye-opening. The entire industry is putting in defenses today that wouldn’t have been there if not for these vicious attacks. The carnage of these assaults has sparked a flame in healthcare, one that will hopefully continue to shine brightly. Otherwise, they’ll be the next ones to the stake.

The government has also become, or should I say always was, a favorite target for cyber witches that continue to plague their security. We noticed some advanced witchcraft thrown out the government this year in the forms of the OPM and IRS hacks. The enchantresses behind these breaches were sophisticated and able to craft unstoppable spells over the government networks who weren’t ready for their potent effect of data lose. These attacks were used to gain more insight into government employees and could only be the beginning of their spells. The stolen data these witches stole will probably be used later on to create a more refined incantation using this pinched data as an ingredient in their cauldron for an even greater conjuring of evil towards the government and their employees. The government as a whole needs to wake up and start making changes that will protect themselves from these types of attacks. They’re the biggest target to these overseas witches and will be for years to come.

 Something interesting we saw this year, that we don’t see every day, was a group of cyber fiends being hunted down by what seems like a another individual to usurp them from their evil throne. This of course was the “Hacking Team” hack, where the group “Hacking Team” was selling surveillance and malware to countries to spy on their people. The zombie hunting Phineas Fisher, who’s could play both hero and villain, defended these countries by exposing “Hacking Team” for what they really were. It’s interesting to watch these cyber vigilantes come right after evil, while toeing the line of becoming exactly what they’re fighting against. This battle for cyber purity is one that can swallow up a person, or group for that matter, if they’re not careful.

My dear friends, it’s been a terrifying 2015 and one that gives us reason to worry. Let’s use this Cyber Awareness Month as a way to educate others against ghouls on the internet lurking in the dark webs ready to pounce. Constant diligence and education will keep us safe, because you never know when they’ll strike. Let us be like Ghost Busters and team up together to let everyone know that “We ain’t afraid of no ghosts!”