Over 230,000 computers were affected by the WannaCry ransomware attack in 2017 across 150
countries, including hospitals, businesses, and federal government agencies. The attack was
particularly devastating since it took advantage of a known security vulnerability in Microsoft
Windows that had been patched months earlier. So even if you are using updated software, you
are sometimes vulnerable to cyberattacks.


Future cyberattacks will only increase in quantity and severity. The risks increased as our
reliance on innovation increased. Because of the Web of Things (IoT) growth, more gadgets are
currently linked to the internet. Therefore, hackers may have access to more potential attack
avenues.

October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month. So now is a perfect time to think about
online risks and take precautions to safeguard your business.


The following are five cybersecurity incidents that happened this year:


1) Shields Health Care Group disclosed a data breach in June 2022 that affected over 2 million
patients. Shields claimed that an “unknown actor” gained access to patient’s electronic health
records using legitimate employee login information.


2)Crypto.com, a cryptocurrency marketplace, tweeted in January 2022, “Several individuals had
their accounts subjected to fraudulent activities. All money is secure.” It was later revealed that
more than $30 million worth of cryptocurrency was stolen, despite the hack initially merely
being described as “an incident.” The data leak affected about 483 people, according to
Cypto.com. The hackers accessed some user accounts, where transactions were being processed
even if the user had not entered the two-factor authentication. Crypto.com immediately
terminated all two-factor authentications in reaction to the event, and all users were forced to
change their passwords.


3) Through their “Bug Bounty” programme, Twitter got a tip in January 2022 regarding a
potential security risk that might be abusing a zero-day vulnerability. Twitter disclosed that
hackers were attempting to sell the data of the 5.4 million affected users for $30,000 on the dark
web. The system would check automatically if an email address or phone number already had an
account on Twitter and give the user a list of connected account names when they entered those details.

4) On its dark web forum in April 2022, the Russian ransomware group Conti declared that they
had successfully breached the Costa Rican Ministry of Finance. In a series of well-planned
attacks, Conti successfully breached 27 separate ministries, leading to a $20 million ransom
demand. The Costa Rican authorities declined to pay the ransom. Instead, it shut down its
systems to limit the damage while hiring foreign cybersecurity companies to help with
restoration operations. However, this resulted in a massive public backlash and months of
crippled government services.


5) The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) declared in January 2022 that it had
fallen victim to a deliberate supply chain attack in November 2021. An unpatched vulnerability
in the organisation’s system had allowed the attackers access to its network. They had access to
the beneficiaries, volunteers, and employees’ personal information. The hack compromised
roughly 515,000 records in total. The ICRC shut down its systems in reaction to the attack and
hired outside cybersecurity companies to assist in their recovery efforts.

These significant cyberattacks have several vital lessons for us:


Organisations need to be alert that they can be targeted by hackers even if they don’t possess
sensitive data because targeted assaults are on the rise.


Attacks on the supply chain pose a serious concern. As a result, businesses must ensure that their
contractors and suppliers are as safe as possible to avoid being compromised.


It is crucial to use two-factor authentication; to prevent account takeover attacks.


Be on the lookout for suspicious activity, e.g. sudden changes in account behaviour.


The issue of cybersecurity is complicated and calls for a multifaceted solution. Businesses must
make significant security investments, develop incident response policies and processes, and inform staff about cybersecurity threats.