During the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been an increase in terms of devices per person, such as laptops, tablets and smartphones due to the need of remote working and studying; this has also accelerated the process of digital transition of companies.

In that period, all companies had to find new ways in order to work and interact with online customers because of restrictions and the closure of so many activities. This has led to an increase in the adoption of digital technologies such as e-commerce, remote collaboration (Skype, Teams, Zoom, etc.) and the automation of business processes.

On the one hand, the incredible digital transition has given the opportunity to continue to operate to the companies and to access their services to the customers but, on the other hand, the risk of becoming cybercrime victims has tremendously grown.

The risks continue to grow when employees connect to company systems via personal devices, because there are some vulnerabilities related to remote access connections, such as Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) and Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) that are commonly targeted in attacks.

Not by chance, a recent study found that 56% of employees use personal computer for working from home, while 25% admit to failing to follow their company’s security policies for remote access/working from home.

Currently, there are three main attacks to face:

• Cybercrime: it includes single actors or groups that attack the systems to obtain an economic gain or sharply interrupt business activities.
• Cyberattacks: whose main goal is to interrupt the critical service of a company or recover sensitive information.
• Cyberterrorism: that aims to undermine electronic systems security to cause panic or fear.

Here below, there are some of the methods commonly used to threaten computer security:

• Phishing: it is a form of cyber fraud where e-mails, that seem to come from reliable sources, are sent but they try to steal sensitive data, such as information about credit cards or access data. This is the most prevalent attack. To prevent these threats, it is really important to know how you can distinguish fraudulent e-mails and use technologies such as e-mail filters.
• Ransomware: it consists of a cyber threat which locks file or system asking a payment to unlock but this does not guarantee that you will have the access back or that the system will function correctly.
• Malware: a computer program created to violate the security or cause damages to the computer itself without authorization.
• Social engineering: a technique that is used to trick people in order to obtain confidential information or access to systems or personal data. Hackers use this technique to convince users to reveal information or do something that give them an advantage. This attack can be combined with other threats to increase the vulnerability of users and convince them to click on dangerous links, download malware or trust bad sources.

What can companies and single users do to protect themselves against cyber threats?

• Use secure passwords. Passwords should be long, complex and unique for each account. It is important to enable Multi Factor Authentication (MFA) rules and access policies.
• Keep software and operating systems updated; in general, updates can fix vulnerability in terms of security.
• Install antivirus software and keep it always updated: a good antivirus can help you to protect the system from viruses or malware.
• Pay attention to phishing: do not click on suspicious links or attachments in e-mails or text messages.
• Backup regularly in order to recover data in case of loss due to cyber-attacks.
• Monitor constantly your financial account to detect any suspicious activity.
• Use a secure Internet connection, such as Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) for online purchases or when you access to sensitive data.

Even when you use updated devices, if authorized users can legitimately establish access remotely, there exists a potential for threat agents to as well. For remote access endpoints with weak or unused security features (especially those exposed to the Internet), attackers can easily use common attack methods to gain access.

The current approach used by companies in terms of cybersecurity is reactive, it means that they only respond to threats when the attack is underway or even ended with clear consequences.

In our opinion, an efficient security system must follow a preventive and strategic approach based on the combination of well-defined operational processes, cutting-edge technology and a well-established business culture.

Users must understand data security principles and act consequently, the companies must have a framework to manage attacks while technology provides the necessary tools for protection, including firewall, DNS filters, a protection against malware, antivirus software and solutions for e-mail security.

Therefore, cybersecurity is the set of actions aimed at defending computers, servers, mobile devices, electronic systems, Networks and data from dangerous attacks. So, it represents a fundamental measure as cyber-attacks can cause serious problems to a company, such as IP theft, access to employees’ personal data, production and working activities arrest.

In Miralis, we are perfectly aware of the depth of this topic and how it is important to reduce the risks.

Computer systems show so many vulnerabilities that, if exploited, can allow hackers to achieve the remote control of legacy systems that are still used in businesses.

One of our main goals is to safeguard our clients’ cybersecurity, this is the reason why we have decided to collaborate with BearIT, a cybersecurity company that provides solutions to protect our clients’ sensitive data.

Through a proactive approach, we guarantee a constant monitoring in order to identify any threats and adopt the right measures in terms of security to prevent them.

Not only does it ensure the continuity of working activities even in case of cyber-attack, through an efficient recovery plan, but it also saves time and money in order to avoid that the company dedicates time and internal resources to manage cybersecurity which can be expensive and time-consuming.

As is well-known, all our codes are certified and tested by BearIT according to cybersecurity and in compliance with normative systems and laws in terms of privacy and information technology security.