Crypto viruses are a type of ransomware that have been very lucrative for cyber criminals around the world lately. Just this week, Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital notably paid $17,000 to their crypto captor to get their files unlocked so they could continue to do business. In this post we will give some background on what a crypto virus is, how it enters your network, and what we can do to prevent it. Crypto Viruses All crypto viruses fall under the umbrella of ransomware. In general, ransomware works by holding files, servers, or other systems, "hostage" until the victim pays for their release. As…
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Continuing our series on layered defense, we are going to take a look at full packet capture. Full packet capture (FPC) is still fairly misunderstood in the IT community. For many, FPC is synonymous with NetFlow, or simply source/destination and metadata information on packets. Others think of it as a beast that is used in conjunction with Wireshark to show a ton of indecipherable data. On the contrary, FPC is one of the most powerful practices that we can employ to give us a full, deep understanding of everything that is coming and going on a network, with the ability to…
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We told you not to trust your neighbor. But you should be able to trust your vendors, right? Not necessarily! In recent weeks there have been a couple of high profile security vendor breaches/vulnerabilities. Juniper Networks disclosed two backdoors in their firewall code and Fortinet also had a backdoor/vulnerability within their software. Both Juniper and Fortinet backdoors would give an attacker access to your firewall. Your firewall! Remember -- this is the very device that is supposed to keep your network protected!! Oh, the irony. So... Down with vendors, then? Obviously, no. We cannot grow all of our solutions at home. And…
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More times than not, people who fall victim to identity theft think about online transactions and recent credit card purchases that they made when trying to figure out how their information was compromised. Sadly, it really only takes some confidence, creativity, and a bit of luck to prey on someone and assume their identity. The computer is optional. Yes, it is important to protect your passwords. Yes, it is important to secure your network defenses. Yes, it is important to think twice before using that shady looking phone charging station. But, as we've said in the past, attackers look for the weakest penetration…
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We've mentioned in numerous blogs that you need to stick with what you are good at and I cannot stress how important this is when it comes to secure network security services. We have seen numerous companies try to handle their own security and they either do it inefficiently or just plain wrong. Using a managed security service provider (MSSP), like an IT managed service provider (MSP), will provide you better results at cheaper costs. Benefits of a MSSP Cheaper cost. A huge benefit that may not be immediately evident to management is how much cheaper it is to go with…
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