Update Your Threat List!
If you are looking to update your security awareness training materials (and in some cases, your Acceptable Use Policy), here is an EXCELLENT article that can help.
Tony Bradley of PC World hits the nail on the head with an article that delineates eleven “hidden” security threats. To help you realize how fresh these threats are (at least most of them), I’ve listed them as follows:
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1. Shortened URLs (like bit.ly or tinyurl)
2. Data Harvesting of Social Media profiles
3. Social Network Imposters
4. Web Snooping
5. Scareware
6. Trojan Horse Texts
7. Lost Laptops
8. Rogue Wi-Fi Hotspots
9. Weak Wi-Fi Security
10. Endangered Data Backups
11. Unpatched Software (not just Windows)
The author goes on to detail five security myths that I intend to use in my awareness training this year:
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1. I don’t have anything the attacker would want
2. I have AVS installed, so I’m safe
3. Security is a concern only if I use Windows
4. My router has a firewall, and thus I’m protected
5. I have nothing to worry about, I only visit reputable sites.
I’ve actually heard each of those five myths . . . I call them excuses myself . . . in the past couple of months. It could be that with the holidays I was around a lot more non-bankers.
Finally, as if to polish off an already good article, Mr. Bradley then provides a set of excellent resources that should be added to anybody’s link collection.
Not only does Bradley explain the vulnerabilties, and why they are vulnerabilities, but he also offers suggestions for how to mitigate risk of exploitation.
The only thing I found slightly negative about the article is that when I went to tweet it using infotexnow, the NetworkWorld webpage it was on automatically plugged a shortened URL.
Whoops! Not really practicing what we preach, but we can’t hold that against the author! The web people need to read the articles they’re posting!
Instead of blaming the author, I recommend that EVERYBODY check out this article. Not only is it well-written, but it makes a concise resource for ISOs.
Get it here!
Posted by Dan Hadaway, CISA, CISM
Managing Partner
Infotex, Inc.
