Killware is a form of malware used with the sole purpose to cause physical harm or even death. Cybercriminals that deploy this type of malware have one aim to bring about pure destruction. Killware is a relatively recent term that has been extensively reported in the media in the past few weeks. Experts think that killware could be the next major cybersecurity threat, as more critical infrastructures are targeted by criminals whose actions are aimed at causing real-life harm. www webroot com safe
Although, until recently hackers have been primarily focused on causing financial damage however, recent attacks on crucial infrastructure have revealed that hackers are attempting to cause damage. While financial issues are reversible in however but the actions of cyber criminals could be deadly and irreparable.
A great illustration is an incident that took place in Florida earlier in the year. The primary goal of the hacker who hacked this system was trigger water contamination that could have affected real people who live in Florida’s sunshine state. Fortunately, the attack was put on hold before the water quality was compromised. However, the perpetrator was not caught and until today there is no way to determine who is responsible for the attack. If the attack succeeded the victims could have been seriously injured. What makes this particular incident alarming is the fact the fact that the water plant was targeted solely to cause damage. There were no demands for ransom.
Unfortunately, this attack isn’t just a single incident. This week, government agencies disclosed three other cyber-attacks that weren’t reported until today. The attacks occurred in 2021 and prompted the release of a cybersecurity advisory by four top-level U.S. security agencies – Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as well as the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Security Agency (NSA). The advisory highlighted the fact that both known and unknown hackers are actively attacking the operations and information technology networks, systems and devices that are operated through organizations like the U.S. Water and Wastewater Systems . These actions could compromise the capability to WWS facilities to provide drinking water, and may cause physical harm to real people.
Homeland Security does not necessarily claim that hackers are just after water-related facilities. The attacks are targeted at other infrastructure providers like banks, hospitals as well as transportation and police departments etc.
However, the anticipated growth in autonomous cars is an area where killware is likely to be utilized. Security breaches could result in devastating consequences if cyber criminals can influence and control cars in heavily populated areas or traffic. While they’re not considered killware the attacks are similar to those discovered since 2000. To date, all attempts have failed. webroot.com/safe
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How Can I Protect Your Device From Killware With Webroot? 3 years ago