Four Categories of Cyberthreats to Dominate in the Next Year

Identifying cybersecurity threats can be a tricky business, as no one knows exactly what the next big attack will be. However, a new report says that while we can’t specifically identify these threats, we can be prepared for the four major types of threats we are likely to face in the coming year.

In an article on the Government Computer News website, William Jackson outlines what he calls a “handful of techniques” for “exploiting systemic weaknesses in the information technology environment that can broadly define the threat landscape.”

What are some of those categories of threats? They include:

• Botnets and organized exploits. According to Jackson, this “phenomenon of organizing compromised computers into a network that can be used for nefarious purposes has been around for years, but it is becoming an increasingly powerful platform responsible for a growing variety of attacks.”
• Web site and web application exploits. Approximately 82 percent of web sites have at least one weakness.
• Virtualization. Jackson says this is an emerging security issue, but “is important because of the rapid adoption of virtual machines in data centers and of virtual environments for delivering applications to users.”
• Network infrastructure. Operating systems are more security, but hackers are now paying more attention to the network and its underlying services.

“This is not a comprehensive list, and vulnerabilities and exploits will continue to come and go, requiring day-to-day attention from IT administrators and security shops,” Jackson says. “But the list addresses matters that are going to merit concern in the coming year and are worth further investigation.”