Cyber Security: Cyber Attacks and Current Threats (Essay Sample)

Cyber security has grown to be one the most important and challenging issue in the modern day organizations. The security of informational data, intellectual property and all other critical information was not paid attention to until in the recent years. Threats and attacks are increasing everyday with each attack or threat being complicated and sosphicated in its own nature. The rise of these incidents has made lots of company organizations; lose both its revenue and its reputations as critical data are stolen including their clients financial data, therefore making them to lose their good and trustworthy reputation of keeping their customers information safe as described by Knapp (2009).
Modern digital technology is making it easier and possible for us to do the most important things in our lives with ease. Banking while at home, stock trade services now available even on your phone and some other social doings are mostly done through a digital device. Such services offered by different companies have caught the attention of cyber criminals who are very ready to utilize any loop hole and vulnerability to attack these computerized systems in many organizational companies just as depicted by Geers (2011). The cloud has been the daily way of operating business from the workers and employees management, and has made it easier to manage and track sales and other important information fast and with ease.
The cyber security game has widen further even to the public sectors who are daily involved in transacting important operations in the country. This sector of public organizations is not spared from the scope of developed threats which has posed a national threat to our citizens sovereignty and freedom while at the same time threatening security and economic sectors of our country.
All these threats always come in when cyber criminals identify a crack, loop hole, or vulnerability that they use to their heinous advantage. When such vulnerability is discovered by an enemy of any particular organization it then poses enormous risks to all aspects of that organization. These vulnerabilities mostly occur from individual human errors, hard wares, connections and software’s. hence making them to acquire some vital information that they were not supposed to acquire, or information that is going to put their clients to risks as shown by Johnson (2013).
Cyber warfare is intensifying as companies are now heavily investing in the security of their data. They have spent a lot of funds in the attempt to prevent hackers by advancing in the latest upgrades and end encryptions that are targeted in profiting their information security. These breaches and other common cracks and vulnerabilities are more than often protected by digital developments and advancements. However as these companies develop new tricks the same is happening on the other side of cyber criminals. They keep finding gaps in our cyber security, that they use to steal information and data from many organizations which they use to carry out their agendas.
The technological world tricks evolve very fast as its now evident that social engineering has become the latest form of cyber vulnerability in most of the present companies as suggested by Hadnagy (2011). Social engineering is unlawful act of manipulation that cyber criminals use to access vital information of individuals or companies. The deception is commonly associated with the convincing process to a worker to open a certain link containing malicious components such as viruses and manipulate those technological staff to enable them in accessing the hardware of the organization.
Social engineering threats are on rapid growth which is primarily focusing on deceiving financial institutions. Cyber criminals are smart to an extent that they can even start a social media communication with a client or an employee deceive and trick them to submit important and critical details the backbone of their criminal acts.
Social engineers are shrewd and smart personalities that "hack "human minds and exploit the weaknesses in peoples nature. They give important details, data and information that assist the social engineers access an organization financial system hence being able to steal some resources. Social engineers can also be used by an organization enemies or competitors to ruin a good reputation, steal ideas and information of both the clients and the company which they use to their advantage. Each company has private information that is normally protected with all systems against cyber theft; however these can be jeopardized by a single individual who discloses vital details such as passwords. This lead to cracking and ruining of an organization website and website account to launch ill willed attacks of the name of an organization.
Smooth talks and terminologies are just some of the tricks used by social engineers to show genuine they are thus making it easier to get a code verbally rather than cracking it for long hours. Social networks used by these organizations has also made it possible for the criminals to access knowledge and individual details of a company or a client whether on facebook, Twitter or You tube. Phishing is the most common a social engineering technique which has been used to target and mislead subordinate workers and staff who are given the authority and mandate to safeguard the most important details of a company. this shows how serious this is as hackers are finding it easier to access information through sending emails and messages that seem from a credible and genuine source. Once a naïve or less informed worker clicks on the email or the link, then it makes it possible for these hackers to obtain whatever they wished to use to their advantage.