Tech

Is Your Data Secure? Here Are the Most Common Types of Cyber Attacks

These days our whole lives and all our information is online. Are you comfortable with the safety of your sensitive information? What about your business information?

Everyone is at risk of a digital attack. Whether you’re someone who’s password is the same for everything or someone who is up-to-date with cybersecurity.

Check out these common types of cyber attacks and think about how you can keep yourself safe online.

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Malware Attack

This is one of the oldest and most common cyber attacks. Cybercriminals create and disseminate malicious software, otherwise known as a ‘virus’. This attack can damage devices, data, or networks.

There are many different types of malware attacks. They are a dangerously effective way to gain access to an individual’s sensitive information or finances.

This is one of the easiest cyber attacks that individuals and businesses can protect themselves against.

There are cybersecurity solutions to protect yourself. Check out companies such as Scarlett Cybersecurity that offer methods of scanning, identifying, and removing malware.

Man-in-the-Middle (MitM)

This attack is exactly what it sounds like. The hacker interrupts communications between a client and a server by creating an obstruction.
Check out these common MitM attacks

Session Hijacking

The hacker hijacks the client’s IP address and puts the attacking IP address in its place. The server continues the communications session none the wiser.

IP Spoofing

This works by persuading the server that it is communicating with a trusted client, providing the attacker access to the system.

Phishing Scam

This is a type of social engineering attack. Worryingly, it’s becoming a more popular and sophisticated means of exploiting small businesses and individuals.

This works by using social engineering to pose as a trusted contact. The victim downloads an infected file or clicks on a malicious link that sends important information to the attacker.

Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS)

This is basically a flood attack. It works by completely overloading the target network. The attack increases the traffic to such a degree that it makes it unavailable to the user or anyone else.

This causes the targeted network to completely destabilize or crash. Many different IP addresses are used to launch the attack, so it’s very difficult to identify the perpetrator.

This aims to make a business or site inoperable. It may be to shut down the services, or to distract the organization’s developers so that information can be stolen.

Web Application Attacks

This is when criminals find vulnerabilities in applications and gain access to finances or information in this way. These attacks are often used on sites or applications with large databases containing valuable, sensitive information.
These are the most common web application attacks: