At the end of each year, the organizations publishing dictionaries release terms that will be included in their next editions. Terms that would have been nonsensical just years ago become commonplace. One word has been hiding just below the surface of our everyday conversation. It is terrifying in terms of scope and mortifying in terms of transmission. I speak of the word “ransomware.”

Topics: Security, SentinelOne, cybersecurity, Ransomware, Cybercrime, Email Security, Information Security

We're excited to share that our partners at the cybersecurity firm SentinelOne have announced another innovative response to the wave of ransomware attacks law firms and other organizations are facing: a Ransomware Cyber Guarantee.  

 

Your law firm must plug the security holes remaining in your network. Anti-virus software is no longer enough. 

 

You need next-generation endpoint security.

Topics: Security, Technology Consulting, IT Tips, SentinelOne, cybersecurity, Ransomware, Cybercrime

Our partners at the cybersecurity firm SentinelOne have shared the below blog post on recent security problems with Pokémon GO. Remember to ensure your devices are secure from all threats, including those hidden within apps.

 

The past week has evoked an unfamiliar sight in many of the country’s public areas: Hundreds of young adults—heads down, eyes glued to their phones—wandering through public parks in search of Pokémon. In many ways, Pokémon GO represents a seismic societal shift. No other game has really captured the potential of augmented reality in a way that’s really seized the public imagination. By the same token, another seismic shift has opened up—a whole lot of people are suddenly getting an unpleasant education on the dangers of mobile malware, account privacy exposure, and GPS hacking.

Topics: Security, Malware, Technology Consulting, IT Tips, SentinelOne, cybersecurity, Ransomware, Endpoint Protection, Pokémon GO, Cybercrime, Mobile

As we wrap up this series of Law Firm Cybersecurity Tips, remember that we're always keeping an eye out and keeping you up-to-date on new threats to your law firm. For our final post in the series, we'll discuss a very dangerous threat to law firms.

A highly destructive —  to information as well as physical security — threat is the Advanced Persistent Attack (APT).

These threats come in several different forms. They are stealthy and determined in their attempts to compromise data. They can be simple, such as a rogue administrator account hiding in an obscure organizational unit in your Active Directory (you are checking who has membership to domain administrative and enterprise administrators, right?), ranging to the better-known Trojan-horse attacks. Some of these viruses sit on your computer or server silently collecting your data for months.

The Stuxnet computer worm is a famous example. While this threat was originally intended to target Iran’s nuclear capabilities, hackers discovered the source code and re-engineered it to use against individuals and corporations.

Topics: Security, Malware, IT Tips, Network, SentinelOne, cybersecurity, Advanced Persistent Threats, Endpoint Protection, APTs

So what does someone need to know about the annual RSA Conference? Most technical people know about it. However, as an account executive, I felt it was important for me to understand what the acronym “RSA” stands for. In my defense, I was a first-time attendee. But I wanted to know what kind of group I’d become involved with, and I figured knowing the meaning behind the acronym would give me a pretty good idea. Now, if you’re not a real techie, you probably don’t know the answer to my question. In fact, many people I talked to didn’t know. That made me feel better. I wasn’t alone in my ignorance. I went on a personal search to find out.

Topics: Security, Training, IT Tips, SentinelOne, cybersecurity, Partners, Endpoint Protection, RSA Conference

UPDATE 1 MAR 2016: Our partners at Mimecast announced today at the RSA Conference that they are launching the first-ever threat protection against whaling. Learn more here.

 

Whaling Attack? No, it’s not the latest survivalist reality television show. It’s a potential hacking threat posing a real problem for today’s technologically driven law firms and companies. [Update 29 FEB 2016: Here are a few good, if sad, examples of whaling.]

As in reality, whales are bigger than phish. Phishing is usually conducted using shotgun-style emails sent to the masses looking for people to divulge sensitive information, like Social Security Numbers or other personally identifiable information (PII). A whaling attack, however, targets the C-suite, partners, upper management, celebrities and other individuals of high worth or influence.

Topics: Security, Malware, Technology Consulting, IT Tips, Disaster Recovery, Email Management, Network, SentinelOne, whaling, cybersecurity, phishing

When it comes to information security there is no silver bullet to stop attackers from infiltrating your firm. The “defense-in-depth” approach to information security is simple: add many layers of protection between yourself and the outside world. Hardening your computer is exactly what it sounds like, adding security measures to increase the difficulty of an attacker compromising your system. Below you will find a checklist of system hardening best practices, each of these are easy to implement and are critical in protecting your computer.

Topics: Security, Malware, Technology Consulting, Data Recovery, IT Tips, Disaster Recovery, Information Governance, Email Management, Access Control, SentinelOne