Cyber Security

Cybersecurity Collaboration Holds Immense Significance in Today’s Threat Landscape

Published

1 year ago

September 25, 2023

Ertug Ayik, the VP and MD of Middle East and Africa at HP, speaks about the security threat landscape in the region and what companies can do to keep these threats at bay

Tell us about the security threat landscape in the region. How has it evolved over the years?
The security threat landscape in our region, like many others, has evolved significantly over the years. We have witnessed a shift from primarily isolated attacks to a complex and interconnected threat landscape. Threat actors are becoming more sophisticated, and attacks are increasingly targeted and financially motivated.

Emerging technologies, such as IoT and cloud computing, have introduced new attack vectors. The shift to the cloud has also made cybercrime easier, cheaper, and more profitable. Traditional security measures have focused on detecting malware to prevent attackers from gaining access to critical systems. Over the last year, we have seen signs of increased development and trading capabilities – from tools to hack BIOS passwords, to rootkits and trojans targeting device firmware.

Organizations must adapt to this dynamic environment by implementing proactive security measures and staying informed about evolving threats. Increased resiliency, meaning, the ability to respond to hackers who have managed to exploit a vulnerability, is key.

What sort of role does the security community play in countering cyber threats?
The security community plays a crucial role in countering cyber threats. It serves as a collective defence mechanism against the ever-evolving threat landscape. Security professionals, researchers, organizations, and governments collaborate to share threat intelligence, insights, and best practices. This collaboration fosters a deeper understanding of emerging threats, enables rapid response to incidents, and enhances detection and mitigation capabilities.

Additionally, the security community contributes to raising awareness about cybersecurity and promoting proactive defence strategies. HP Sure Click, one of our key security solutions, not only protects users from various cyberattacks but also contributes to this collaborative ecosystem. Its containment-based approach enables us to capture and analyse malware execution traces, providing valuable insights to the security community. Collaboration with industry experts and leveraging threat intelligence providers empower us at HP to better identify and evaluate emerging threats before they pose significant risks.

Tell us about HP’s HP Sure Click. How does it help in keeping security threats at bay?
HP Sure Click is a groundbreaking security solution that plays a pivotal role in safeguarding against security threats. It leverages cutting-edge micro-virtual machine technology to create secure environments for handling untrusted content. By isolating potentially malicious activities within these secure micro-VMs, HP Sure Click prevents threats from spreading to other parts of a network.

HP Sure Click goes beyond safeguarding web browsers; it extends its protection to cover documents like PDFs and Microsoft Office files. This approach ensures that even if a file is compromised, the malware within it remains contained and cannot infect the user’s device. HP Sure Click also quantifies risks by recording how users encounter threats, whether through email attachments, browser downloads or clicking on links.

These insights reduce known risks and may even uncover previously unknown risky user behaviours that can be addressed at an organizational level. HP Sure Click automatically maps attack attempts to MITRE ATT&CK, an industry knowledge base that enables organizations to understand the techniques that attackers are using against their organizations and prioritize their defences based on the threats they face.

By employing HP Sure Click, organizations can proactively defend against malware attacks, enhance their cybersecurity posture, and maintain a secure computing environment.

What are the significance and benefits of cybersecurity collaboration in terms of public reporting, sharing analysis tools, and collaborating within trust groups to enhance collective knowledge and response capabilities?
Cybersecurity collaboration holds immense significance in today’s threat landscape. We all have different vantage points of the threat landscape so by engaging in collaborative efforts such as public reporting, sharing analysis tools, and participating in trust groups, the security community amplifies its collective knowledge and response capabilities. This approach helps in several ways.

Firstly, public reporting of cyber threats raises awareness and allows organizations to tackle emerging threats proactively. Secondly, the sharing of analysis tools accelerates the identification and response to cyberattacks, enabling faster mitigation. Thirdly, trust groups foster a sense of shared responsibility, trust, and mutual support within the security community. Collaboration within these groups promotes a more coordinated and effective response to threats.

HP recognises the importance of such collaboration and actively contributes to the security community by sharing insights and analysis through research and publications.

What are the challenges of cybersecurity collaboration, and can these be overcome?
In the realm of cybersecurity collaboration, we encounter a multitude of challenges that demand careful consideration. The foremost among these challenges is the reluctance to share sensitive information due to concerns about data privacy and security. However, to effectively counteract evolving threats, it is important that organizations overcome this hurdle by anonymizing data and following robust security protocols for information exchange. Organisations can consider participating in collaboration platforms that ensure confidentiality while also implementing clear legal and governance frameworks designed to protect shared information.

Building trust requires establishing strong relationships among all parties. Another formidable challenge lies in the allocation of resources required for seamless collaboration. Coordinating efforts across diverse entities can be resource-intensive, necessitating efficient resource pooling and allocation. To surmount these challenges, industry groups can play a pivotal role in facilitating collaboration and distributing resources effectively. Moreover, the establishment of standardized legal agreements can provide a solid foundation for secure information sharing.

Ultimately, the cornerstone of successful cybersecurity collaboration rests on trust. Fostering trust among collaborators is an ongoing process that hinges on transparent communication, the diligent protection of shared data, and a unified commitment to bolstering collective security efforts. By addressing these challenges head-on, we can collectively fortify our defences against the relentless evolution of cyber threats.

Related Topics:Africa Cybersecurity Featured HP Middle East

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Cyber Security

Sophos MDR Protects 26,000 Customers Globally with Latest Innovations

Published

8 hours ago

January 23, 2025

Chris Fernando

Sophos has announced that its Sophos Managed Detection and Response (MDR) service has reached a major milestone, now protecting more than 26,000 organizations globally, growing its customer base by 37% in 2024. This achievement highlights the increasing demand for Sophos’ proactive, expert-led security solutions, which help organizations of all sizes stay protected 24/7 against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats, including the most advanced ransomware, business email compromise (BEC) and phishing attacks.

Sophos MDR offers a comprehensive suite of capabilities that go beyond standard threat containment to include full-scale incident response, such as root cause analysis, the removal of malicious tools or artefacts used by attackers, and investigations across customers’ environments to ensure adversaries are fully ejected to prevent another attack. What further differentiates Sophos is that these incident response services are included with Sophos MDR on an unlimited basis, meaning customers are not additionally charged and there is no limit on the number of incident response hours. Sophos MDR Complete also includes a breach protection warranty covering up to $1 million in incident response expenses. Sophos provides flexibility for how customers can work with the MDR analysts, including the ability to pre-authorize them to contain an active threat.

Sophos has made significant investments into its MDR offering with increased analyst capacity, AI-assisted workflows, new features and expanded integrations to help deliver the best possible outcomes through improved protection, detection and investigation of threats. Sophos has added the following new features:

Proof of Value: New Sophos MDR service insights to explain the MDR team’s actions including highlighting the human hours spent threat hunting and creating and tuning detections. High-value dashboard enhancements include details of MITRE ATT&CK tactics uncovered in proactive threat hunts conducted by Sophos’ MDR team, MDR analyst coverage, case investigation summaries and an account health check status.
Enhanced Security for Microsoft Customers: New Sophos-proprietary detections for Microsoft Office 365 identify threats including business email compromise and adversary in the middle account takeover attacks, independent of the customer’s Microsoft license level.
Expanded Compatibility with Third Parties: This expanded ecosystem of turnkey integrations with third-party cybersecurity and IT tools includes a new Backup and Recovery integration category.
Proactive Vulnerability Mitigation: Sophos Managed Risk powered by Tenable provides attack surface vulnerability management as a new managed service option for Sophos MDR customers.
Efficiency and Automation: Sophos MDR has added AI-powered workflows to streamline operational processes and drive better security outcomes for our customers. This innovation delivers a reduced mean time to respond (MTTR) through more efficient triage, while also ensuring that all legitimate threats are rapidly investigated. This enables analysts to concentrate on other tasks such as threat hunting, account health monitoring and detection engineering.

“Attackers are continuously advancing their tactics to outmanoeuvre traditional security defences,” said Rob Harrison, senior vice president of product management at Sophos. “Our customers rely on Sophos MDR to help their organizations tackle today’s threats 24/7 with full-scale incident response to remove active adversaries and conduct root cause analysis to identify the underlying issues that led to an incident. We’re consistently evolving our solutions with new offerings and integrations, just like attackers are constantly evolving their tactics, so customers can disrupt threats before they escalate into destructive attacks.”

Cyber Security

Group-IB Joins Cybercrime Atlas at WEF to Combat Global Cybercrime

Published

2 days ago

January 21, 2025

Edward Frank

Group-IB has announced today that it has joined the Cybercrime Atlas—an initiative hosted at the World Economic Forum—to contribute to the research of the evolving landscape of cybercrime, support the disruption of cybercriminal infrastructure and operations, and to enhance collaborations between local and international stakeholders to enhance cybersecurity globally.

The Cybercrime Atlas, hosted at the World Economic Forum’s Centre for Cybersecurity, leverages open-source research to generate actionable insights into the cybercriminal ecosystem. Its community comprises organizations pivotal in identifying and dismantling cybercriminal activities. This collaborative initiative seeks to build a global, action-focused repository of cybercrime intelligence, promoting cooperation among investigators, law enforcement, financial institutions, and businesses at both national and international levels. Group-IB’s analysts have already begun contributing to Cybercrime Mapping, and Cybercrime Investigation Working Groups.

“Joining the Cybercrime Atlas initiative is not just an opportunity – it’s a responsibility. In a world where cyber threats transcend borders, collaboration is our most powerful defence. By uniting with the Cybercrime Atlas community and other key stakeholders, we connect expertise and critical intelligence, creating a united front that can disrupt criminal networks and make the digital world a safer place for everyone,” said Dmitry Volkov, CEO, Group-IB.

“The Cybercrime Atlas is a collaborative research initiative by leading companies and experts, facilitated by the World Economic Forum, to map the cybercrime landscape. The insights generated are promoting opportunities for greater cooperation between the private sector and law enforcement to address cybercrime,” said Tal Goldstein, Head of Strategy and Policy, World Economic Forum’s Centre for Cybersecurity.

Cyber Security

ESET Research Discovers UEFI Secure Boot Bypass Vulnerability

Published

3 days ago

January 20, 2025

Chris Fernando

ESET researchers have discovered a vulnerability, affecting the majority of UEFI-based systems, that allows actors to bypass UEFI Secure Boot. This vulnerability, assigned CVE-2024-7344, was found in a UEFI application signed by Microsoft’s “Microsoft Corporation UEFI CA 2011” third-party UEFI certificate. The exploitation of this vulnerability can lead to the execution of untrusted code during system boot, enabling potential attackers to easily deploy malicious UEFI bootkits (such as Bootkitty or BlackLotus) even on systems with UEFI Secure Boot enabled, regardless of the operating system installed.

ESET reported the findings to the CERT Coordination Center (CERT/CC) in June 2024, which successfully contacted the affected vendors. The issue has now been fixed in affected products, and the old, vulnerable binaries were revoked by Microsoft in the January 14, 2025, Patch Tuesday update.

The affected UEFI application is part of several real-time system recovery software suites developed by Howyar Technologies Inc., Greenware Technologies, Radix Technologies Ltd., SANFONG Inc., Wasay Software Technology Inc., Computer Education System Inc., and Signal Computer GmbH.

“The number of UEFI vulnerabilities discovered in recent years and the failures in patching them or revoking vulnerable binaries within a reasonable time window shows that even such an essential feature as UEFI Secure Boot should not be considered an impenetrable barrier,” says ESET researcher Martin Smolár, who discovered the vulnerability. “However, what concerns us the most concerning the vulnerability is not the time it took to fix and revoke the binary, which was quite good compared to similar cases, but the fact that this isn’t the first time that such an unsafe signed UEFI binary has been discovered. This raises questions of how common the use of such unsafe techniques is among third-party UEFI software vendors, and how many other similar obscure, but signed, bootloaders there might be out there.”

Exploitation of this vulnerability is not limited to systems with the affected recovery software installed, as attackers can bring their copy of the vulnerable binary to any UEFI system with the Microsoft third-party UEFI certificate enrolled. Also, elevated privileges are required to deploy the vulnerable and malicious files to the EFI system partition (local administrator on Windows; root on Linux). The vulnerability is caused by the use of a custom PE loader instead of using the standard and secure UEFI functions LoadImage and StartImage. All UEFI systems with Microsoft third-party UEFI signing enabled are affected (Windows 11 Secured-core PCs should have this option disabled by default).

The vulnerability can be mitigated by applying the latest UEFI revocations from Microsoft. Windows systems should be updated automatically. Microsoft’s advisory for the CVE-2024-7344 vulnerability can be found here. For Linux systems, updates should be available through the Linux Vendor Firmware Service.