Security Risks Lurk Everywhere

In a world where the risks to your data lurk everywhere and the stakes to your future have never been higher. Security breaches in healthcare equipment can cost millions of dollars and threaten lives. We hear about insider attacks and humans being compromised to get to sensitive data virtually every day. Machines have the same security issues; if they can access sensitive data and they aren’t being secured properly, that’s an open door for attackers –that can put individuals’ privacy at risk.

Attackers don’t target humans to get to data, they just target the data. If machines, especially those in charge of automated processes (think repeatable tasks like bank transfers, scraping web data and moving customer data files) provide the best path to get to the sensitive data, that’s the one the attackers will choose. One of the many ways that life has changed for several of us in the last couple of years is the hybrid work phenomenon.

A recent study found vulnerabilities in software used in common medical devices like patient monitors, allowing for remote code execution, denial-of-service attacks, and information leaks. Cyberattacks against medical technology are rising, and criminals are making off with valuable patient data like bandits. It is essential to protect the lifeblood of your business with optical encryption.

The roots of this are buried in the sudden change of environment that many companies had to provide for. Security policies were written on the assumption that there are premises; people would work in a restricted access area or room. They would have workstations that were company-provided and up to date with easily enforceable security policies. Covid spurred many privacy issues here.

Many workers were given a budget and told to avail themselves of a laptop. These will not have the same level of security as one that your employer gives you, or as your office workstation. Likewise, the concept of secure work areas at home is not a realistic one for most of us, with families, flat mates, or strangers in the coffee shop peering over our shoulders. The hybrid work model has changed the privacy game as well. It means that companies have to re-evaluate how data privacy is enforced in 2022. Securing access to sensitive data by remote employees will be big in 2022.

Deepak Sahu, President & CEO, VARINDIA