April 6th 2023
UNDERSTANDING THE DARK WEB:
How to Protect Your Organisation from Cyber Attacks
It’s security month at Lily! This month, we’ll be focusing on cyber security and how you can keep your organisation safe and protected from possible cyber attacks. Make sure to check out our next blog on cyber essentials but for now, let’s address the topic of today’s blog: the dark web.
The dark web is a breeding ground for cybercriminals to carry out illegal activities such as selling stolen data, drugs and weapons. Over the past year, 39% of UK businesses experienced a cyber attack with the most common threat being linked to phishing attempts (83%) and other sophisticated attacks such as malware or ransomware attack. It’s important to know what threats your company could face and how you can avoid being a victim of an attack like this.
In this blog, we will touch on what the dark web is, how it can pose a threat to organisations and address cyber security tools that will keep your data and finances safe.
What is the Dark Web?
The dark web is encrypted web content that is not found on public search engines and can only be accessed on specific browsers like a Tor browser. The internet we use on a daily basis is just the tip of a criminally ruled iceberg. The majority of the internet is hidden away from the public in the deep dark web where anonymity and privacy are strongly held.
Its bad reputation stems from the unethical and criminal activities that take place on it, such as selling drugs and weapons as well as exchanging stolen data to prompt data breaches and cyber attacks.
How Are Organisations Vulnerable to the Dark Web?
Organisations are especially vulnerable to dark web threats as cybercriminals can use the anonymity provided by the dark web to carry out attacks without the fear of being traced. Below, we address the main types of attacks that take place against organisations.
1 - Stolen Credentials
One of the most common dark web threats is the sale of stolen login credentials, such as usernames and passwords. Cybercriminals can use these stolen credentials to gain access to an organisation’s sensitive data or network.
2 - Phishing Scams
Phishing scams are fraudulent emails or text messages (known as ‘smishing’) that trick individuals into sharing sensitive information or clicking on malicious links. These scams are often very realistic and will pretend to be well-known organisations, such as the NHS, in order to mislead the individual.
3 - Malware
Malware is software that is designed to harm a computer or IT network. Cybercriminals can use the dark web to purchase and distribute malware, which is often used to steal data or take control of an organisation’s systems.
4 - Ransomware
Ransomware is a form of malware that stops you from accessing your devices by encrypting the data and files stored on them. A cybercriminal (or group) will demand a ransom in exchange for the decryption. This type of attack is not as common across UK organisations but it is still seen as a major threat which has led to 56% of businesses having a policy to not pay ransoms.
High-profile dark web attacks are constantly making headlines over the last few years. Just last year, Twitter announced that data from 5.4 million accounts had been stolen and posted on a hacking forum. This included users’ email addresses and phone numbers. Once this attack was investigated, it was found that Twitter had identified a vulnerability earlier that year which had led to hackers gaining access to this data.
To avoid your own organisation being at risk, learn how you can implement cyber security measures to stay protected at all times below.
How Dark Web Monitoring Can Help Your Business
Despite the threats we face from cyber attacks, only 35% of organisations actively deploy security monitoring tools. At Lily, we take cyber security seriously. Your data is valuable and needs to be kept safe from the latest risks online.
To support our clients, we offer Dark Web ID™ which is a leading dark web monitoring platform that combines artificial intelligence (AI) and human analysis to smartly identify, analyse and monitor your organisation’s data on the dark web. With this knowledge, you will be able to find out if your data has been stolen or compromised. This can include your employee’s passwords from company platforms and personal client data.
Key things to implement in your organisation’s security policy are strong passwords and 2FA as 80% of hacking-related breaches are a result of stolen and/or predictable passwords. If you want to know if your data has been breached, Dark Web ID™ will discover this by analysing millions of sources across the dark web as well as providing actionable cyber security insights to improve your organisation’s procedures.
Simulate Phishing Attacks with Lily Shield Solution
Lily Shield is our complete IT protection solution that includes IT support, anti-spam filtering, web protection and more. As part of the standard package, we offer real-world simulated email phishing campaigns alongside dark web scanning.
Our phishing campaigns enable internal, simulated phishing attacks on your employees to test how aware your organisation is of keeping their data and personal information safe. Unsurprisingly, 90% of cyber security breaches are caused by human error - for example, giving data away to a realistic phishing scam. By using this, you will identify this vulnerability with routine phishing attacks and monitor which employees are click-prone.
As part of keeping your organisation vigilant, this campaign tool also includes security awareness training campaigns that can be targeted to employees who are at high risk of clicking into scams. If you are looking to implement a strong IT security solution, contact us to find out more about Lily Shield today!
5 Best Practices for a Cyber Secure Organisation
Protecting your organisation against dark web threats requires a multi-layered approach that includes both technology solutions and employee training. Here are some best practices to consider:
- Use strong passwords and two-factor authentication: Encourage employees to use strong, unique passwords and enable two-factor authentication across devices wherever possible. This will make it much more difficult for cybercriminals to access your organisation’s data or systems.
- Educate employees on phishing scams: Issue regular simulated phishing attacks so your employees stay vigilant and provide targeted training for how to identify suspicious emails with our dark web monitoring tools.
- Regularly monitor the dark web for threats: Consider using a monitoring tool, like Darb Web ID™ to detect signs of stolen data on the dark web. This will help you identify potential vulnerabilities and take action to address them before cybercriminals exploit them.
- Implement a robust IT security strategy: Work with a trusted IT security expert to provide a secure IT strategy that will protect you from malware, ransomware, phishing attacks and more.
- Conduct regular security audits: Regularly audit your organisation’s security measures to identify potential vulnerabilities and find areas of improvement so you can stay one step ahead of cybercriminals.
If you follow these best practices, your organisation’s data and information will be kept safe from possible cyber attacks.
Contact Lily for a Free Dark Web Audit
If you’re worried that your passwords and client information may be on the dark web, contact Lily for a free audit of the dark web. We are experts in IT security and will work with you to implement a secure system so contact us at 0343 507 1111 or message us today to find out more.