Collaborative cybercriminal mindset accelerating attacks on
small to mid-sized businesses in 2022, leading to more closed
doors
WATERLOO, ON, Feb. 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- BlackBerry
Limited (NYSE: BB; TSX: BB) today released the 2022 BlackBerry
Annual Threat Report, highlighting a cybercriminal underground
which has been optimized to better target local small businesses.
The report also uncovers cyber breadcrumbs from some of last year's
most notorious ransomware attacks, suggesting some of the biggest
culprits may have simply been outsourced labor.
"Criminals are working out how to target us better. The
infrastructure of the cyber underground has evolved so they can
deliver more timely and personalized deceptions to the public,"
said Eric Milam, Vice President of
Research and Intelligence, BlackBerry. "This infrastructure has
also incubated a criminal shared economy, with threat groups
sharing and outsourcing malware allowing for attacks to happen at
scale. In fact, some of the biggest cyber incidents of 2021 look to
have been the result of this outsourcing."
Key findings of the 2022 BlackBerry Annual Threat Report
include:
- Small businesses are an increasing focus of attack:
Small businesses will continue to be an epicenter for cybercriminal
focus as SMBs facing upward of 11 cyberthreats per device per day,
which only stands to accelerate as cybercriminals increasingly
adopt collaborative mindsets.
- Public cloud platforms are unwittingly hosting malware:
An increasing number of payloads are being housed in public cloud
platforms. The majority of these payloads are highly malleable,
meaning they can be cheaply customized. This trend was especially
prevalent in North America, where
local hosting of vicious payloads including Cobalt Strike
surged.
- 2021's biggest attacks may have been outsourced: In
multiple incidents BlackBerry identified threat actors leaving
behind playbook text files containing IP addresses and more,
suggesting the authors of this year's sophisticated ransomware are
not the ones carrying out attacks. This highlights the growing
shared economy within the cyber underground.
- What's old is new – with a twist: The proliferation of
digital channels has brought old tactics – such as phishing and
watering hole attacks – back into the mainstream, primarily because
of their ability to scale. This suggests these tactics will
continue to see relevance as digital innovations like the metaverse
and increased AR solutions come to market.
Following in the footsteps of the Biden Administration's
recently rolled out Zero Trust strategy, widespread adoption of a
Zero Trust mentality and a frictionless approach to security for
end users is imperative across all sectors. With damage from the
SolarWinds scandal still lingering, this path forward shows that
the government is looking ahead to how existing tactics will be
leveraged in the new year alongside of potential new risks in
quantum computing, the metaverse, connected vehicles and beyond,
while removing barriers to Zero Trust adoption.
To learn more, download a copy of the 2022 BlackBerry Threat
Report.
About BlackBerry
BlackBerry (NYSE: BB; TSX: BB)
provides intelligent security software and services to enterprises
and governments around the world. The company secures more
than 500M endpoints including over
195M vehicles. Based in
Waterloo, Ontario, the company
leverages AI and machine learning to deliver innovative solutions
in the areas of cybersecurity, safety and data privacy solutions,
and is a leader in the areas of endpoint management, endpoint
security, encryption, and embedded systems. BlackBerry's
vision is clear - to secure a connected future you can trust.
BlackBerry. Intelligent Security. Everywhere.
For more information, visit BlackBerry.com and follow
@BlackBerry.
Trademarks, including but not limited to BLACKBERRY and
EMBLEM Design are the trademarks or registered trademarks of
BlackBerry Limited, and the exclusive rights to such trademarks are
expressly reserved. All other trademarks are the property of
their respective owners. BlackBerry is not responsible for
any third-party products or services.
Media Contact:
BlackBerry Media Relations
+1 (519) 597-7273
mediarelations@BlackBerry.com
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SOURCE BlackBerry Limited