ACTION REQUIRED
Cyber Security threats are always evolving and from time to time something happens that indicates a significant shift in concern levels. The most recent of these events was making sure that all end users implemented 2FA but due to its success, Cyber Criminals are now focused on targeting this. In March of this year, we published an article about this in our monthly email reports -under the What’s New Section – detailing what you needed to look out for and what precautions need to be taken to protect yourselves.
Unfortunately, we have recently seen a situation where a customer has unknowingly handed over their password and 2FA code leading to a significant sum of money being lost. It is now clear that the Cyber Criminals have reached a stage where the social engineering in their Phishing attacks is so good that other customers are going to be affected, so below is an emergency stop gap to specifically target the immediate issue.
You may already be compromised so please do this now
We have created a 1-minute-long video showing you how to carry out a manual check to make sure that you are not compromised.
I ran through this myself and including the time to review all my rules (I have loads) it took me 5 minutes and 30 seconds from start to end.
Why Are We Not Doing This On Your Behalf?
We would need to know your password (or reset it)
We would need the 2FA code to be generated at that time
We wouldn’t recognise what rules you have put in for yourself so would have to check each one with you
Who Should Do This?
If you have anything whatsoever to do with finances in your organisation, then it is imperative that you do this NOW
We would recommend that everyone in your organisation does this as soon as possible as if you have one person that is compromised then your business is at risk
As the video says, if you spot any rules that you do not recognise then please get in touch with us.
What Are We Doing Directly?
We are proactively going through and removing users from being global administrators from MS 365. Doing this significantly reduces the amount of damage that can be done should a user with these rights be compromised. If you are a user that needs to have this access, then we can reinstate this but would need to email over a disclaimer and receive your confirmation of acceptance by return.
What’s Next?
Phishing attacks target the human firewall (the end user) so vigilance and being continuously cautious is critical, but it won’t be enough. One solution is not going to fit all and due to the vast sums of money being made by the criminals if we close one door then they will just go and find another way. Trying to stay ahead of Cyber Criminals and create a 100% impenetrable IT solution isn’t going to work and thus we are working to evolve how we work with and advise our customers going forwards.
We are expanding our portfolio of Cyber Security solutions (news to follow very soon about a significant new service that we are in the final testing phase of) and will also be providing specific business advice that we have either implemented ourselves or will be implementing which could make a significant difference to your business if you are caught out by a Cyber Attack.
But Doesn’t This Message Look Exactly Like A Phishing Attack?
Yes, any message that tries to impart a sense of urgency and a need to click on a link should be viewed with scepticism. There is only one link in this message and that is to YouTube, so if in doubt search for our YouTube channel and you will find the video there. If you are still concerned, then give us a call on the existing number you have for us or look our number up via our website.
