Commenting on reports that Facebook is targeted by hackers around 600,000 times every day, the organisers of Infosecurity Europe say that this shows the immense scale of cyber criminality on the Web.
Speaking on the purposeless malignity, Claire Sellick, Event Director for Infosecurity Europe said: “The sheer scale of the potential hackery that Facebook undergoes every 24 hours means that smaller companies are also likely to be hit by multiple attacks in the same time period.”
Ms Sellick revealed: "You don't have to be a mathematical genius to realise that this rate of attack means that the social networking giant is being hit by almost seven hacking attempts every single second. That's an astonishing figure and - even though Facebook is a high profile social networking site – you begin to realise that automation is now at the heart of the modern hacker's arsenal.”
Ms Sellick warned: “And this automated electronic artillery could easily be brought to bear on any Internet-connected server – no matter how large or small the organisation concerned is. The consequences of a cyberattack with just 100 attempts in an hour – let alone 2,500 – is enough to bring any IT security manager out in a cold sweat.”
“The inevitable conclusion that can be drawn from all these figures,” the Infosecurity Europe Event Director went on to say, “is that the hacker playing field has changed markedly over the last few years, allowing hackers to automate their attacks on a scale never before thought possible.”
The resultant question on any IT security professional's lips is how they can hope to counter this automated level of Internet attack. And the answer, says Sellick, “is education on the latest defence strategies - as well as the latest technology that is now available in the marketplace.”
“This is why security education is a central facet of Infosecurity Europe - which takes place on April 24th - 26th next year. We will have keynote, business strategy and technical theatres operating over all three days, as well as a technology showcase theatre that allows attendees to hear one-on-one about new and existing products, services and solutions,” she said.
Sellick concluded: “Coupled with an Information Security Exchange and an array of security workshops, Infosecurity Europe 2012 will go a long way to educating users about the advantages that effective IT security brings to the better business table,”... It's unlikely that any corporate server will be hit by 600,000 automated attacks in a 24-hour period, but it's clear that the security playing field needs to be levelled for IT professionals, and the free education that Infosecurity Europe offers will help to achieve this.”