Here’s wishing everyone a safe and secure 2022.
As we begin the new year, unpatched vulnerabilities from the year gone by are returning to haunt us. While the volume of cyberattacks took a dip on the last day of 2021, this is little cause for cheer as we expect the attacks to rise in the next 7 days. Hackers will primarily rely on exploiting existing vulnerabilities and missed patches to wreak havoc on IoT, OT and ICS systems.
Specific geographies like the Middle East and North America are likely to witness a higher quantum of rising cyberattacks because of the involvement of APT actors. We advise manufacturers and oil and companies to maintain a high level of vigilance this week as we have seen hackers strike these two industries with remarkable consistency in the first weeks of every year since 2017.
If your systems haven’t been patched, we advise you to do that at the earliest. Operating with the right threat intelligence and applying policies at the lowest possible level by micro segmentation will also help.
Cybersecurity frameworks such as the NIST CSF, ISA99/IEC 62443 security standards were the top measures sought by businesses. It is however essential to move forward and comply with these standards at the earliest.
Weekly advisory
Segments under this list must be on high alert in the coming weeks:
- Critical Infrastructure
- Enterprise
- Healthcare
- Oil and gas
- Manufacturing
- Water and water treatment
- Utility treatment facilities
- Governments
- Financial services