Cyberattacks continue to affect a variety of businesses. As an example, a vulnerability that has recently been highlighted by the FBI is where any stolen smartphone that has a credit card added to Apple Pay, Samsung Pay or Google Pay, and public transportation schemes enabled can be used by criminals to make unlimited payments at any point-of-sale (PoS) terminal.
The flaws lie in the contactless payment system, and can be exploited even when a phone’s battery is dead, as in the case of iPhones. Even the latest iPhone model have weaknesses.
Can we expect these concerns to continue into 2022?
According to expert Josh Rickard (Security Solutions Architect at Swimlane) it is important for businesses to periodically re-assess their cybersecurity systems.
Rickard tells Digital Journal this is particularly important within the context of 2021, “To re-evaluate their cybersecurity posture after a tumultuous year of cyberattacks across industries.”
Trends suggest that cyberattacks are not going away and they are generally increasing in terms of frequency. Rickard cautions: “The dramatic spike in ransomware and supply chain attacks illustrates that every company, regardless of vertical, is a software company and security will only continue to rise in importance when it comes to ensuring the continued operations of the business.”
This means that businesses should be building robust and proactive programs to counterbalance these external threats. As an example, Rickard recommends: “To protect valuable information and prevent breaches, enterprises must invest in multi-faceted platforms that centralize and automate detection, response and investigation protocols. Security teams need full visibility into IT environments and the ability to respond in real-time to limit the consequences should a cyberattack occur.”
Rickard also puts forward the idea of automating and centralizing security processes. Through this he says: “Organizations can reduce the chance of human error while achieving infinitely smoother execution of security-related tasks and ultimately ensuring that highly-sensitive personal information is kept safe and secure.”
