The telecommunication service industry is experiencing more advanced malware threats than any other industry group. Researchers at Lastline discovered that ninety percent of malware samples submitted by their customers in the telecom industry had not previously been submitted to VirusTotal. The global average is sixty-five percent. Additionally, one in ten of these samples exhibited advanced capabilities, compared to the global average of one in twelve.
The researchers believe that the deviation may be a result of the sector’s defenses being more effective, forcing attackers to use innovative methods to be successful. Consequently, the industry is faced with constantly evolving attack campaigns that are explicitly designed to avoid detection by updated systems.
Interestingly, all the malware samples analyzed by Lastline were delivered using just fifteen file types, while the global average is forty. In most cases, the malware appears as a Rich Text Format (RTF) document, although archive file types are also popular. These file types are email-related, as email is the primary vector of compromise in the sector.
This discovery highlights the importance of the end-user as your last line of defense. Even the best antivirus would fail to detect the vast majority of these threats. Earlier this year, Symantec more or less admitted that antivirus is dead.
Your employees need new-school, real-world, interactive security awareness training to prevent this malware from gaining access in the first place. Help Net Security has the story: https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2018/08/17/telecom-services-malware-threats/
Free Phishing Security Test
Did you know that 91% of successful data breaches started with a spear phishing attack?
Cyber-attacks are rapidly getting more sophisticated. We help you train your employees to better manage the urgent IT security problems of social engineering, spear-phishing and ransomware attacks. Take the first step now. Find out what percentage of your employees are Phish-prone™ with our new, improved free test.
PS: Don't like to click on redirected buttons? Cut & Paste this link in your browser:
