The previous year witnessed a surge in cyber threats as a result of the conflict in Ukraine and the rise of remote work. Cybercriminal activity increased with the backing of nation-states, enabling attackers to exploit new vulnerabilities, according to Hans Ulrik Staehr, CEO of Munit.io. The consequences of a security breach are now more severe than ever, including reputational damage, financial losses, and operational disruption. To prevent catastrophic hacks and breaches, it is crucial for organizations to equip themselves with the appropriate tools. Here are four threat trends that security teams should be aware of in 2023:
Growth of Cybercrime-as-a-Service
The success of Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) has spurred an increase in other attack vectors, leading to a significant expansion of Cybercrime-as-a-Service (CaaS). This business model is attractive to threat actors, who can take advantage of turnkey offerings with varying skill levels without spending time and resources to create their own unique attack plans. For seasoned cybercriminals, creating and selling attack portfolios as-a-service is a quick and repeatable source of income. Subscription-based CaaS offerings may provide additional revenue streams. Cybersecurity awareness education and training are crucial methods to defend against these developments. Organizations should consider adding new modules that educate employees on spotting evolving threats, such as AI-enabled threats.
Reconnaissance-as-a-Service (RaaS) Models Could Increase Attack Effectiveness
As attacks become more targeted, threat actors may hire “detectives” on the dark web to gather intelligence on a specific target before launching an attack. Reconnaissance-as-a-Service offerings may serve up attack blueprints, including an organization’s security schema, key cybersecurity personnel, the number of servers they have, known external vulnerabilities, and even compromised credentials for sale. Luring cybercriminals with deception technology will be a helpful way to counter both RaaS and CaaS during the reconnaissance phase. Cybersecurity deception combined with a digital risk protection (DRP) service can help organizations gain an advantage and know the enemy.
Automation to Boost Money Laundering-as-a-Service
Money Laundering-as-a-Service (LaaS) could quickly become a mainstream part of the growing CaaS portfolio. To grow their cybercriminal organizations, leaders and affiliate programs employ money mules who knowingly or unknowingly help launder money. Cybercriminals will turn to machine learning (ML) to help them identify potential mules better. Manual mule campaigns will be replaced with automated services that move money through layers of crypto exchanges, making the process faster and more difficult to trace, decreasing the chances of recovering stolen funds. DRP services are critical for external threat surface assessments, finding and remedying security issues, and gaining contextual insights into current and imminent threats.
Virtual Cities and Online Worlds to Fuel Cybercrime
New, fully immersive experiences in the online world are emerging with the rise of the metaverse. While these virtual cities offer new possibilities, they also open the door to an unprecedented increase in cybercrime. An individual’s avatar is essentially a gateway to personally identifiable information (PII), making them prime targets for attackers, particularly their digital wallets, crypto exchanges, NFTs, and any currencies used to transact in these virtual cities. The AR and VR-driven components of biometric hacking make it easier for cybercriminals to steal fingerprint mapping, facial recognition data, or retina scans. The applications, protocols, and transactions within these environments are all possible targets for adversaries. Real-time visibility, protection, and mitigation are crucial to dealing with this threat. Advanced endpoint detection and response (EDR) can enable real-time analysis, protection, and remediation.