Inside Storey
YOUR DATA IS NOW MINE Are you prepared for a ransomware attack?
BY TED McINTYRE WITH CYBER SECURITY SPECIALIST DEREK BROWNE
DESPITE THE PANDEMIC, the construction world churns away at warp speed. It’s hard to find time to scrutinize whether that Facebook friend request or email link are legit, or to remember whether you’ve bothered to update your computer software or back up your files in the past month… or year…or ever. And that makes you ripe for the picking for cyber-attackers, says Derek Browne, Chief Information Security Officer at Federated Insurance/ Northbridge Financial. The online threat du jour has become ransomware, Browne notes, where your computer files are encrypted, forcing you to pay the criminal to release your data (usually in untraceable Bitcoin), in the hope that they actually keep their promise—and that they also don’t decide to share those files with the rest of the world, just for kicks. ohba.ca
@onhomebuilder
According to 2020 Threat Intelligence Index from IBM’s X-Force cybersecurity unit, ransomware accounted for nearly 60% of all attacks on Canadian IBM customers last year. During a CHBA cyber security webinar in March, a member noted they had been subject to a ransomware attack two years ago from a computer program named Phobos. It was a reminder that it’s not just major corporations that get targeted by cyber criminals, and that it’s a growing business. It’s like a spreading virus, Browne warns: If you don’t take precautions, it’s simply a matter of time before you or someone you know gets infected. OHB: WHO NEEDS TO WORRY MOST ABOUT THESE THREATS— LARGE OR SMALL COMPANIES? DEREK BROWNE: “Most social
engineering and ransomware are just crimes of opportunity. I, as an attacker, can spend a lot of time researching your
company to find out who owns it, who the accountant is, who the employees are, and then try to attack those individuals with very targeted emails, pretending to be a key person in the company. But unless the target is known to be valuable, it’s not worth my time. If I were to mount a ransomware attack on OHBA members, without a doubt the easiest route is a simple phishing attack—just spamming out a bunch of emails until somebody clicks the link. “Of the test simulations we send to our clients’ companies, 12% click on the link. Proper security training can help reduce that to almost zero. “But once the attacker gets that click, they have access to your environment and will look into your email address book and see who the most high-value targets are. And then they’ll use them as the next tier of victims. And they maybe they’ll look on your email to see if you’ve applied for a loan and get your credit card info, or maybe your drivers’ licence and picture, which they can sell in the underground market. “And then they can download malware from there. It happens fast.” YOUR COMPANY’S REPUTATION IS AT STAKE TOO.
“A lot of a home builders’ or renovators’ business is word of mouth. And if all of a sudden you cannot deliver on your business, or are known as the source of an attack on your partners, and your customers, that’s very bad for business. So it just makes sense to spend the time and money to protect yourself from something like this. Just as you would lock your door at night, you need to lock your virtual doors as well. BUT AREN’T MOST PHISHING ATTEMPTS PRETTY OBVIOUS?
“Some are. Look for things like poor grammar, poor spelling, or if they don’t know your name. Maybe the logo colours are off or the resolution looks fuzzy. One of the biggest indicators is the email address it’s from. Examine the address to see if it looks correct. “Context is everything. If someone is reaching out at a time they normally ONTARIO HOME BUILDER SUMMER 2021
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