Types of Cyber Security Threats- Fundamental Analysis

Cybersecurity threats come in many forms and have varying levels of effect on the target system. Understanding the different types of cyber security threats and their different effects is important to identify and take the different appropriate steps that are needed to protect themselves and their data. 

Most Common Cyber Threats 

Let us now look at the threats that are commonly faced by a user. 

Malware: Malware is short for “malicious software” and refers to any software that is specifically designed to harm or exploit a computer or network. Types of malware include viruses, worms, Trojans, and ransomware.

Phishing: Phishing attacks are a common type of social engineering attack in which attackers send fake emails or text messages claiming to be from a legitimate organization in an attempt to trick the recipient into disclosing sensitive information or clicking on a malicious link.

Denial of Service (DoS): DoS attacks are designed to flood a website or network with traffic, rendering it inaccessible to legitimate users. These attacks can be carried out using botnets or other methods.

Man-in-the-Middle (MitM): MitM attacks occur when an attacker intercepts communication between two parties and can read, modify, or block the transmission of data.

SQL injection: SQL injection attacks involve inserting malicious code into a database through an unprotected input field, such as a login form. This can allow an attacker to gain unauthorized access to sensitive data.

Zero-day vulnerabilities: Zero-day vulnerabilities are previously unknown security weaknesses that can be exploited by attackers. These vulnerabilities can be particularly dangerous because they have not yet been patched by the software or system’s developer.

Insider threats: Insider threats refer to individuals within an organization who have access to sensitive data and systems and who may intentionally or unintentionally compromise that data.

These are some of the common types of cyber security threats. But it is important to understand that everyday new methods of threats are emerging every day. 

What are Some Methods to Protect Yourself From Different Types of Cyber Security Threats? 

There are many precautions that you can take to protect yourself from being from attackers. Let us look into the most common and the best methods that you can use for the same. 

• The first and foremost step that you can do to ensure that your accounts are safe is to use a strong unique and complicated password. This ensures that the attackers can’t easily guess your passwords or use brute force to access your account. One way of making your passwords stronger is by ensuring it is at least 8 character or above. It can be further enhanced in security by including a capital letter, a number, and a special symbol in the password. 
• Having a good password is the first line of security that you can have against attackers. The next one is to enable two-factor authentication on your account. Two-factor authentication works by sending an OTP to the user’s phone that has to be verified in order to access the account after logging in using the main password. This ensures that even if the attackers have cracked your password they still won’t be able to access your account. 
• It is a good practice to make sure that your system and softwares are updated and up to date. This is because any vulnerabilities or bugs that might cause a security risk is patched in new updates. 
• Only open emails or install programs from a trusted source. Phishing attacks are common. One of the most common points from where the attacker gets access is by sending a random email with a link. And when a user clicks on the link malicious programs are downloaded onto their system. When we are also installing applications from unknown sources. There are chances that this software might have underlying codes that might be malicious. 

Professional Level Digital Forensics Services 

There are many cases even after taking all the safety precautions you might unfortunate situation where you might be a victim to different cyber security threats In situations like this the best option you have is to investigate the situation using a digital forensics service provider. Identify how the attack was made and protect yourself against further attacks. 

SysTools provides one of the Most Reliable Digital Forensics Services in the industry. They have close to a decade of experience dealing with the same with more than 50,000 successful cases and 100% happy customers. In many cases some if not most of your data can be recovered by performing a digital forensics investigation and identifying the way that was used for the attack. 

Conclusion 

In this article, we have learned about the different types of cybersecurity threats that users can face. We have also discussed the various security measures that you can take to protect yourself against such an attack. 

But in case even after taking all the precautions if still a victim of a cyber security attack. Then the best option is to use the professional digital service providers that we have mentioned earlier.