BotNet News

From critical infrastructure attacks to hackers stealing healthcare records at UC San Diego Health, breaches have dominated the tech news cycle over the past two years. But what are data breaches and how do they occur?

Data breach occurs when a company’s computer system is exposed without the owner’s permission. The resulting exposure can expose personal information, financial details, or corporate intellectual property.

Hackers can use software bugs, stolen credentials via phishing, misconfigured cloud instances, or brute force to access private file networks or back-end databases. From there, they can steal high-value files like email addresses or credit and debit card information that attackers can sell on the dark web or use to commit identity theft, money laundering or extortion.

While companies can do a lot to prevent a data breach from happening in the first place, it’s almost impossible to stop all cyberattacks. That’s why it’s essential to have robust security measures in place, including third-party risk management, data encryption, risk assessment and endpoint and network security. Continuously authenticate users and implement a least privilege policy to ensure that people have only the access they need for their job role.

A good rule of thumb is to keep only the information you really need for your business and only share it with trusted partners. You can also help prevent data breaches by keeping a close eye on your network to detect and mitigate weaknesses before they become threats. And be sure to stay up to date on breach notification laws in your jurisdiction to avoid fines or loss of trust.