Cyber Attacks
Cyber attacks can come in many forms. Some attacks are slow or unnoticeable for months before a significant attack takes place. Some attacks are rapidly deployed, but the impact is short lived. Learning about various types of cyber attacks can help you to avoid them and allow you to respond in a manner that best protects your devices and systems.
Malware
Malicious software, commonly referred to as malware, is software or code that is inserted into a device, usually covertly, with the intention of compromising one or more of these components of your data or systems: confidentiality, integrity, or availability. A cyber criminal may use malware to steal information or carry out malicious activities. Malware is an overarching term that encompasses, but is not limited to, traditional virus, worm, and trojan software, as well as modern ransomware, or rootkits threats.
Ransomware
Ransomware is a type of malware that makes data inaccessible. When ransomware infects a device, it will either lock your screen or encrypt all your files. It may be contained to a single device but is more likely to make the data of an entire organization inaccessible. Once the files are inaccessible the threat actor will send you a message indicating how much money must be paid in order to regain access to your files. This payment is typically requested in cryptocurrency as it is harder to track. The threat actor may also threaten to leak private information or will threaten your clients directly if you do not pay right away.
Denial of Service (DoS)
Denial of Service (DoS) attacks occur when a threat actor attempts to overwhelm a system so that it no longer functions. Most website have limited capacity (bandwidth). DoS attacks will send so much traffic to the website that it is overwhelmed. The service on the website may become incredibly slow or may completely cease to function.