January 7, 2025
January 7, 2025
Corporate cybersecurity professionals are on high alert as companies try to protect millions of remote workers from hackers looking to use the coronavirus pandemic to their benefit. Working from home brings new vulnerabilities for cybercriminals to leverage, since living rooms and home offices are often less protected than company offices. We’ve already seen how cybercriminals are “preying on the heartstrings and panic of individuals around the world,” as Armis Chief Information Security Officer Curtis Simpson puts it, using new phishing techniques that trick people into giving away personal information or money.
During this uncertain and hectic time, it is more important than ever that companies ground their communications in extensive expertise, offering genuinely helpful, fresh guidance and a unique point-of-view. Newsrooms are busier than ever and inundated with pitches; amid all of the noise, reporters are evaluating news cycles day by day and adjusting their coverage accordingly.
We are counseling our clients to do the same as we continue to speak with reporters and follow their evolving coverage. In general, we are seeing that cybersecurity publications are balancing stories that have direct, relevant connections to COVID-19 with normal coverage of security news. The security world doesn’t stop due to a pandemic; ongoing hardware and software vulnerabilities continue to exist and must be reported on. Business and technology publications are primarily focused on coronavirus-related stories, and their security coverage is set against the backdrop of the pandemic.
Cybersecurity experts have an important role to play in helping people stay informed and protected; companies across Mission North’s Trust practice are drawing awareness to cybersecurity threats and educating companies and individuals alike. Here are some of the recent stories that feature our clients’ expert advice for navigating this unprecedented upheaval of normal life.
Protecting Connected Devices, from Light Bulbs to Pelotons
Many internet-connected devices can offer hackers a way into peoples’ home networks, Armis’s Curtis Simpson recently told Fox News. “Home smart devices, many of which are built without security in mind, are a major point of vulnerability for remote workers,” said Simpson. As more of the workforce becomes remote, employees take corporate assets onto personal networks, which are insecure and dotted with even less secure internet of things devices. Connected light bulbs, refrigerators, Peloton bikes and even Roombas can be at risk. These devices become new inroads to corporate networks, making peoples’ homes a new target. Simpson offered advice for keeping these connected devices secure, including multi-factor authentication whenever it’s an option, and checking common modem and router settings to confirm optimum security settings.
Spotting Coronavirus Phishing Scams
Hackers are posing as health insurance providers, out-of-office bosses and even federal agencies offering stimulus checks to trick people into giving away money or sensitive personal information over email. Tessian CEO Tim Sadler spoke with Business Insider about current business email scams.
<split-line>"Impersonating a person in power is a common tactic, and attackers may use remote work as an excuse to convince employees to do something unusual,” like opening a malicious attachment, forwarding a scam email or providing a Social Security number.<split-line>
Sadler says attackers may also leverage coronavirus fears by claiming there's something wrong with a payment to a health insurance provider. He also spoke with TechRepublic and HuffPost about the mistakes organizations might make in managing remote workers, like implementing security solutions and policies that restrict the ways people want to work.
Simpson spoke with Business Insider and Dark Reading about threats to remote workers like phishing emails and how organizations can protect their infrastructure and remote workforce. He advises people to “be ready for an increase in emails claiming to be from senior staff and requesting illegitimate bank transfers and gift card purchases.”
Staying Protected for Free
Ping Identity is offering free multi-factor authentication and single sign-on services for the next six months to help people stay safe during the influx of coronavirus-related hacks and other cybersecurity threats. Information on this resource can be found in Inc., Entrepreneur and CSO, among others. The offer applies to many different applications and identities, and gives users one-click access to software applications, as well as authentication for VPN connections.
Mission North is keeping a close eye on how the media and communications landscape is evolving along with the COVID-19 crisis. To read more about navigating this fast-changing situation, read our guidance on owned content and brand communications.
