Steps to Guard Against Russian Cyber Attacks

We have already seen Russia use cybersecurity measures as part of its attack on Ukraine, making this one of the first major global conflicts in which cyberattacks are employed as an act of war from Day 1 of the conflict. As tensions continue to escalate, we can expect cybersecurity risks – such as distributed denial-of-service (DDoS), ransomware, and data breaches – to increase both across Europe and in the United States. With tensions escalating across the globe, companies of all sizes should anticipate increasing attacks and take the necessary steps to guard against potentially costly damage.

Who is at risk?

While state-sponsored attacks will likely target the infrastructure and energy sectors, cybercriminals will use the fog of war as an opportunity to launch attacks against commercial businesses of all sizes, making companies across the US potential targets.

What can you do immediately to protect your business?

As businesses seek to bolster their defenses, there are several steps you should take immediately to protect against attacks:

• Establish multi-factor authentication (MFA)
  MFA is one of the single strongest actions a business can take to protect itself. This is especially important as the credentials for widely used business applications are the most heavily used to exploit other services. Turning on MFA is something every North Carolina company can do now to protect their technology infrastructure.
• Understand your cybersecurity environment
  Now is the time for companies to identify which assets in their organizations need protecting – from laptops to servers to mobile devices – along with where those assets exist on their network and how they might be vulnerable to attack. Companies should also ensure that employees understand company IT security policies and communicate frequently with employees about both emerging threats and required protective actions.
  
• Consider investing in cybersecurity defense
  While many of the strategies threat actors will use in cyberattacks are well known, the Russia-Ukraine conflict has seen the emergence of new forms of malware and other malicious attacks that could catch businesses off guard. It is imperative that NC companies find a reputable partner to help manage cybersecurity protection in the event they lack the internal skillsets, bandwidth, resources, or knowledge to protect assets.