Mitigating Public-Facing Attacks
In recent years, many high-profile companies have suffered destructive cybersecurity breaches. These public-facing assaults cost organizations millions of dollars in minutes, from stock prices to media partnerships.
Fast Company, Rockstar, Uber, Apple and more have all been victims of these costly and embarrassing attacks. The total average cost of a data breach has increased by 2.6% since 2021 and is now $4.35 million. Organizations that don’t deploy zero trust security models also incur an average of $1 million more in breach costs than other companies that have.
In addition to the monetary loss, the damage to a company’s reputation can be equally devastating. Consumer confidence in the safety of future purchases is often shaken after well-known brands are breached.
How can public-facing businesses prevent or reduce such catastrophes? The key is understanding the vulnerabilities media companies face, and how Privileged Access Management and zero-trust policies can help protect them.
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The Latest Surge in High Profile Attacks
As businesses expand their digital footprints, they become more susceptible to cyberattacks. In the last few years, we’ve seen a surge in sophisticated attacks on high-profile companies.
In September 2022, Fast Company’s Apple News partnership was disrupted by a malicious attack that posted an inappropriate comment on one of its articles. Though administrators quickly removed the comment, this security breach cost Apple and Fast Company dearly in terms of reputation and trust.
A few weeks prior, Rockstar Games confirmed that a threat actor had broken into its systems and stolen confidential internal data. While these attacks typically focus on stealing proprietary gaming information, they often impose collateral damage on users and their confidential data.
Uber was another victim of a major public-facing assault in September when its computer network was attacked. This prompted the firm to suspend many of its internal communications and engineering systems as it investigated the breadth of the break-in. The intruder maintained that they obtained access to company systems by targeting a single employee with multiple-factor authentication login alerts.
Each of these attacks had significant impacts, from direct financial losses to damaged reputations. These companies are not alone, however. Many others have experienced similar public breaches with substantial repercussions, and the trend is rising.
Mitigating Public-Facing Attacks