Cybersecurity Expert

The West Midlands Train service has come under fire after workers discovered that an email promising them a bonus payment after running trains during the pandemic was actually a phishing simulation test. Around 2,500 employees received a message which appeared to come from Julian Edwards, Managing Director of West Midlands Trains, thanking them for their hard work over the past year under COVID-19, and that they would get a one-off payment as a thank you. However, those who clicked through on the link were then emailed back with a message telling them it was a company-designed ‘phishing simulation test’ and there was to be no bonus. The email warned: “This was a test designed by our IT team to entice you to click the link and used both the promise of thanks and financial reward.” Since the test has been revealed, the train service has received media backlash for promising a fake financial reward to well-deserved teams. However, the modern threat landscape is constantly evolving, and i...

Your mobile device can be hacked very easily without your knowledge. Even if an attacker can’t get into your device they can attempt to gain access to the sensitive information instead that is stored inside such as your places visited, emails and contacts. It's not just consumers who are targeted by cybercriminals, the rise of smartphones and tablets in the workplace and the increase in remote working has resulted in hackers targeting businesses via their mobile device vulnerabilities. Most individuals and organisations with very sensitive information, still do not take basic mobile security measures, even with the rising threats to our smartphones. According to a study by Intertrust on mobile security, the cost of mobile app hacks and violations will hit $1.5 billion by the end of 2021. Yet, network systems or even our desktop computers get more attention, with mobile device security continuing to be ignored by organisations across the globe every day. Three Ways a Mobile Device ...

How do you know company data is secure?   How do organisations know their data is secure? And how can companies ensure that a network breach won’t result in a loss of sensitive data? The consequences of a data breach are potentially disastrous for any organisation, so companies need to be reassured that their data is secure at all times in line with any internal and external compliance needs - and that they have the tools and visibility to prove this, should a network breach occur. With 78% of IT security leaders lacking confidence in their company’s cybersecurity posture, now is the time for organisations to focus on applying a ‘Zero Trust’ approach to their cybersecurity strategy. In doing so, security professionals acknowledge that they cannot trust the security of their underlying infrastructure and therefore implement controls from a data assurance perspective, placing emphasis on protecting their sensitive data, irrespective of where this data travels within the network. And...

Last year, a Which? investigation found that 31% of resold smartphone models from three of the major used and refurbished handset stores are no longer receiving security updates. Phone manufacturers only schedule data updates for a certain period after the release of a model, so those looking for an additional bargain in older devices could be putting themselves at risk. As well as security issues, second-hand smartphones that haven’t been wiped by their previous user can still contain sensitive data. Without following the proper steps, anybody considering selling their old phone on eBay or another marketplace could be exposed to fraud in numerous ways. How to Ensure Security When Buying a Phone Phone manufacturers often release information on their security updates, so checking your chosen model is still receiving these updates is essential to remain secure once you start using your new phone. The length of time phones are updated varies by manufacturer and by model. For example, App...

  I ASME  del iv ers Cyber Essentials on behalf of UK  NCSC By Sam Jones | Cyber Tec Security  and Dave Whitelegg What is  Cyber Essentials?  If you are just hearing about the Cyber Essentials scheme, read on as we unpack 10 things you might not know about Cyber Essentials. 1. UK Gov Launched Cyber Essentials in 2014 The UK Government  National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) published its ‘10 Steps to Cyber Security in 2012' , after the UK Government agencies recognised small-medium sized UK businesses require further cybersecurity guidance and support in order to protect the British digital dependant economy.  This led to the development of five critical 'cyber essentials' technical security controls which provides a minimum level of cybersecurity protection. Assurance of the adoption of these five security controls by an organisation provides a good degree of confidence an organisation is protected against the most common cyber threats, th...

The most important and integral part of any data security begins with having firewalls installed in the environment. Not just that, installing firewalls is an essential requirement of the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS ). However, simply installing a firewall on the network perimeter will not make your organization PCI DSS compliant. PCI DSS draws out specific requirements pertinent to firewalls under requirement 1 and its sub-requirements on how firewalls should be installed, updated, maintained along with other firewall rules. Elaborating more on this, we have explained in this article basic PCI DSS firewall requirements, and the need for small businesses to install firewalls. But before getting into the details of it, let us first understand the meaning of a PCI DSS compliant firewall. What is a PCI DSS Compliant Firewall? Firewalls are used to segment or isolate networks and are an essential component to   limit cyber threats and protect internal networks...

Cybersecurity is not a One-Stop-Shop Boris Johnson announced the Government’s roadmap to lift Coronavirus restrictions for both businesses and the general public earlier in February, and since then, this has provided a glimmer of hope for many across the country. However, since the start of the pandemic, the way business is conducted has changed permanently, with many workforces wanting to continue to work remotely as lockdowns and restrictions ease over time. So, as companies relax and rules are eased, life is expected to return to a form of ‘new normal.’ But, the issues around cybersecurity are here to stay, and the gas pedal must not be eased – especially with the increased risks associated with continued remote working. If anything, security should be more reinforced now than ever before to ensure all aspects of a business are secure. But this isn’t the case. Steve Law, CTO, Giacom and Kelvin Murray, Threat Researcher, Webroot, detail the importance of embedding a trilogy securi...

Article by Shiela Pulido Due to our dependence on the internet for digital transformation, most people suffer from the risks of cyberattacks. It is an even greater concern this year due to the trend of remote working and international business expansions. According to  IBM , the cost of cyber hacks in 2020 is about $3.86 million. Thus, understanding how cybersecurity and data privacy plays a priority role in organizations, especially in a multilingual setting. But, what is the relationship of languages in data privacy, and how can a reliable translation help prevent cyber-attacks? The Connection of Translation Company to Data Privacy A lot of people will ask about the clear connection between translations and cybersecurity. In data privacy, conveying important information through effective communications is important. However, with language barriers and complicated jargon in the IT industry, only IT professionals can understand their messages. It is also especially difficult for mu...