COVID-19 cyberwar:

Cyberwar wrapped in the attire of COVID-19: Are we standing over the mound of a latent global threat.

COVID-19 has clattered the world with its demonic presence. This global pandemic has also opened doors for a new menace Cyberwar. Due to constrained lockdown situations around the world, most of the organizations are operating through virtual platforms. This is the reason cybercriminals are considering this time as the right juncture for virtual attacks. Cyber attacks on web servers can sternly affect your virtual business operations. Therefore, it is quite essential to pay intense attention to your cybersecurity measures and ways for their betterment.

World War 1 in 1914, World War 2 in 1939, and the biological combat we are going through, all these destructive events have upset the rhythm of the world harmony and social life. Along with the changing time, the face of devastation is changing secretly and probably it can come in front as the global threat of Cyberwar. It may seem a concept of fiction theory but woefully the existing situation is indicating that it may establish the outset for a Cyberwar.

COVID-19 is the new weapon for cyber invasion

It is quite shocking to know that there has been a rise of 4300% in COVID-19 themed spam since February 2020. Why all these things happening so easily and so frequently because most of the organizations were not prepared sufficiently to deal with such kinds of virtual attacks. The risk factor is too high as more than 50 prodigious malware have been circulated in different campaigns wrapped under the veil of COVID-19.

The icing on the cake is the fact that 1 in every 4 organizations don’t have any kind of Incident Response Plan. It is an invigorating fact for cybercriminals and an alarming situation for organizations around the globe.

Reason: In this testing scenario of a global pandemic, most of the organizations were concerned about the finance available and management, the well-being of their workforce, the adaptability of their supply chains, and operations.

How COVID-19 is providing new pathos to cybercriminals?

Coronavirus has given new pathos to cybercriminals and they are driving their business with more vigour. By generating virus-affined discount codes and by selling virus-themed malware assets on dark-web they are in full swing. Along with that, cybercriminals are also crafting COVID-19 related malicious domains.

A compelled shift to the virtual world during this pandemic has also exposed the orifice for cybercriminals to take advantage of. Most of the people are working from home these days and the majority of such people don’t have the security protocols or equipment for the purpose. When such people access the corporate networks through personal systems, then hackers get the golden chance to cash that opportunity by probing the VPN connections and Wi-Fi configuration for possible vulnerabilities in security.

For personal and working reasons employees conjoin on the cloud-based platform and the hackers are crafting different schemes for hacking and vitiating the live meetings. It is not just about the employees as organizations are not also well-prepared to counter the situation.

According to a virtual poll conducted by Threatpost, 70% of the participants in the poll stated that allowing remote working is certainly new for them and 30% stated an increase in the number of cyberattacks since after allowing the remote working. Therefore, it has become quite essential to maintain organizational vivacity and perpetual vigilance.

Time demands to sense the utility of making instant decisions

If you look at this frightening situation then you can sense how important it is to make immediate decisions. Head and other associates of the security team require filtering the available info for making right and immediate decisions.

Cybersecurity Incident Response Plan…is it requisite?

As per a recent study, 76% of the organizations don’t have any Cybersecurity Incident Response Plan (CSIRP) that is consistently applied in their organization. 1 in 4 organizations stated that they don’t have any kind of CSIRP. Now, in this devastating scenario, they would have sensed its significance.

An efficiently crafted CSIRP comprises of communication practices and sublime governance across different teams. It also consists of response models and detailed roles and responsibilities for the crisis response, for instance, government relations, community, operations, technology, and strategy, etc.

What are the credentials of a good and effective CSIRP?

Here are a few points to check out the required credentials-

How to assess and classify a crisis phenomenon

• Defining roles and responsibilities of in-house and external team associates, consisting hierarchical display summarizing decisions making authority and related departments
• A communication plan crafted for the crisis for communicating with in-house and external stakeholders
• An inventory of High-value assets of the organization and quest the critical competencies and services for the critical support that will enable these
• Disclosure and regulatory requirements linked to the above
• Inventory related to support capabilities such as computer emergency response teams, threat intelligence and remediation sharing with the community, etc.

PHASE-1 of the Crisis Lifecycle: Immediate and effective planning

Organizations that haven’t created a CSIRP must develop one. Some organizations that have a CSIRP should move ahead to evaluate their CSIRPs if there is any loophole regarding their COVID-19 security state. It will help to strengthen the existing plans to confront cyberattacks with more conviction and accuracy.

Actions to be taken:

Building the right plan and squad

It’s essential to update the CSIRP on regular basis as per the operating environment. Recurring personnel changes along with crisis response drills can be a good move.

Decision making should be agile enough

Processes that are developed and tested previously should permit rapid decision making by the stakeholders linked to the response plan. Key personnel should have the power to make vital decisions without waiting too long for the orthodox approval process.

Going deep into the risk management

Each organization should be cyber resilient to keep itself protected from potential cyber-attacks. In today’s scenario, it has become essential to inhibit, respond to, and pull through the cyber-attacks along with sustaining the integrity. The three most vital challenges are-

-Threats: They can intentionally or accidentally exploit the vulnerabilities and demolish or destroy any operational asset or information.

-Vulnerability: It can be considered as loopholes in the security setup that can be utilized by a threat to have an unauthorized entrance.

-Risks: Attack on vulnerable assets by threats can result in damage, loss, or destruction altogether. After the spread of COVID-19 virtual risk has become more emergent, dynamic, and unpredictable.

It is important to remember that there should be proper coordination among technology, cybersecurity, and operations. When the risk turns into reality then the teams require shifting the operations from planning and crafting phase to immediate action, disaster revival, and business continuity.

PHASE 2: Response to the Incident

Even after scrupulous preparations and plans, the crisis may attack in unexpected ways. Crisis hidden inside the veil of COVID-19 can be the reason for systemic failure. In such a scenario, the regular operational capabilities of an organization can be recognized as important to critical infrastructure, needing essential adjustments to stable state actions.

Teams with an experience of simulation drills for updating the response plans and refining the abilities can perform more effectively in the situation of an actual crisis. Such teams are well aware of how to take actions in such situations and heads of those teams to observe the situation efficiently how the situation is developing. As per the situation, they can take decisions and direct when it is required for the protection of staff, consumers, or the stakeholders and data integrity, etc.

PHASE 3: Retrieval and Reformation

According to security experts, COVID-19 may be a glimpse of the forthcoming cyberattacks that may cause social commotion quite heavily.  With the right and tidy combination of eradication and avoidance, simulations, and crisis response drills, heads of security teams can get a greater amount of confidence in their ability to conquer the actual crisis.

We know that cybercriminals are considering this time as a golden opportunity for their cyber invasions but we are also ready with our smart vision, peerless plan of actions, and teams of dedicated performers. We will shatter the dark clouds of cyber attacks with our impeccable and intelligent plans and actions.