Did Doctor Who fail us?

Back in the day (showing my age) Doctor Who would be screened on a Saturday evening. His arch rivals were Cybermen but I’m not sure if he defeated them because I was always watching from behind the sofa!

Cut to the 21^st century and we are living in a world of digital connection. We can’t hide behind the sofa anymore. Security is no longer all about locks and alarms but also looking after our digital presence. Cyber threats are on the rise, and it’s important to keep this at the forefront of your mind to protect personal information, financial data, and privacy.

It would seem that the Cybermen have reinvented themselves and the danger of cybercriminals is everywhere.

What is a cyber-attack?

A cyber-attack is an effort to infiltrate computer systems to alter, steal or destroy data and assets. The threats vary from petty theft to serious organised crime. In a world where pretty much everyone has a digital presence, the cybercriminals have a lot of choice. And an attack on your computer system can be costly both in rectifying the problem and in business downtime.

Why do cybercriminals do this?

Mostly for financial gain – stealing details of credit cards or personal information and identity. Other reasons can be political, to discredit certain individuals, or to perpetuate fake news.

Some past cyber-attacks

In 2016 Yahoo reported that around 200 million accounts were for sale on the darknet. And hackers tried to extort £1m from David Beckham by threatening to release private emails.

The 2018 British Airways data breach affected half a million customers and a quarter of a million had their names, addresses and card details stolen.

Recently the NHS suffered a cyber-attack, showing that these criminals will attack wherever and whenever they can. These are well known and well publicised examples, but they are also the tip of the iceberg.

So how do you avoid the cybermen, without enlisting the help of Doctor Who?

• Secure your Wi-Fi network by changing the name and password.
• Make sure you use strong, unique passwords that are different for each website. I find that using a phrase is easier to remember such as #Mydogisalabradoraged5 (note to hackers, I don’t have a dog!).
• Keep your software updated and make sure you are running the latest versions.
• Enable two-factor authentication wherever you can so that if your password is compromised, an additional verification step will block unauthorised access.
• Avoid clicking on suspicious links or downloading attachments from unknown sources.
• Secure your smart devices and don’t forget other less obvious devices such as cameras, thermostats, and smart plugs.
• Backup your data – my ipad broke recently, and having everything in the cloud made it easy to reinstate my data. The same applies after a hack.

If you are a company owner or a private individual, it’s important to look after your online identity. Remember, those affected are likely to be your customers or your staff, so an attack not only affects the monetary loss, but the loss of faith in your brand.

But what do you do to counteract a hack? There is an insurance policy available to help with management of cyber incidents both before and after an incident. It also covers liability actions that might be brought against you if you are hacked.

For more information visit our cyber page, take our 2 minute quiz to test how ‘cyber savvy’ you really are, and explore our latest cyber resources.