The political landscape between North and South Korea and the West means that cyber warfare is now up there on the political agenda along with nuclear testing.
However, it is not just a political issue. It is a serious threat for global businesses. Banks, broadcasters and media organisations are being targeted and it is affecting both UK and US businesses alike.
Reacting to South Korean officials investigating a suspected cyber attack that paralysed computer networks at broadcasters and banks (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-21855051), Wieland Alge, IT security pioneer, inventor of one of the most robust corporate firewalls and VP and General Manager EMEA at Barracuda Networks, said:
“Investigations into suspected cyber-attacks on broadcasters and banks in South Korea reflects the realisation that cyber attacks are becoming more and more frequent. The gangs behind them are improving their exploitation tactics greatly, whether to display pop-up advertisements, install spyware to spy on users’ Web browsing habits or insert Trojans.
“Any critical infrastructures are in constant danger of being targeted too. Private and publicly owned businesses alike need to have a clear and immediate understanding of the threat situation in order to develop countermeasures to protect themselves from falling prey to the same kind of attack.
“In order to help address this, precautions must be taken at all levels to prevent the crime happening in the first place. A good place to start is by ensuring effective perimeter defences such as firewalls and strong security policies are in place to start with. Cybercriminals are stepping up their game and so should we.”