14 DAY TRIAL // These days, many cybercriminal rings make a profit by convincing organizations to pay various amounts of money to ensure that their sensitive information doesn’t end up online. According to experts, this phenomenon has recently intensified in Israel.
Experts cited by Haaretz reveal that in most cases the attacker gains access to a company’s networks via unprotected Wi-Fi connections. Sometimes, they gain unauthorized access to the mobile devices of employees in order to demonstrate that they broke in.
Then, they threaten to publish the information they obtained if the firm doesn’t pay for their “consulting services.” The crooks don’t even have to steal much data to make their point. Since the organization can’t determine the extent of the breach, a couple of files could be more than enough for the company to believe their claims.
Smartphones are also an issue, especially with the rise in popularity of the BYOD (bring your own device) trend.
Unfortunately, the fraudsters get away unpunished in many situations because the victims don’t report these crimes to the authorities.
Security experts say that the police possess the technological ability to tackle such crimes, but the lack of manpower and finances prevent them from properly handling such situations. Furthermore, while the technology exists, law enforcement agencies usually don’t have individuals who know how to use it.
The recent incidents have demonstrated that not even large companies implement efficient security mechanisms, not to mention small ones which still rely on free solutions.
This is why owners prefer to simply pay up, instead of spending large sums on complex products.
Representatives of the police claim that they’re highly aware of these issues. They state that they are in discussion with the Public Security Ministry in an effort to come up with a solution to obtain the necessary resources.