Why Data Centers Will Need to Beef up Cybersecurity in 2017

If we learned anything in 2016, it was this: The need to beef up cybersecurity — no matter the size or type of industry — is paramount in 2017.

Why Data Centers Will Need to Beef up Cybersecurity in 2017It has been a painful lesson learned as institutions and businesses — from Yahoo! to the Democratic National Committee and federal agencies — were added to the long list of cyberattack victims in recent years.

According to research experts, things will get even more challenging in coming years. For example, Gartner predicts that 25 percent of cyberattacks among enterprises will involve Internet of Thing devices — which are steadily becoming mainstream for business and residential applications.

Here are a few more recent trends that point to the need to invest in more security measures against cyberattacks in the coming year.

Ransomware will get more sophisticated. These prolific attacks, which are aimed at businesses of all sizes, will become increasingly sophisticated as hackers seek a low-cost route to demanding a so-called ransom in exchange for enabling the victim to continue its operations. According to Venture Beat, this threat is poised to expand, with cyber criminals targeting more and smaller entities, including individuals using connected devices at home.

Threats become more insidious. Expert projects also determined that cyber criminals will take their attacks one step further — not just stealing data but actually changing it to disrupt events like political elections.

Individuals increasingly will be targeted. While the average citizen has been victimized by attacks, just think of the massive theft of data from 1 billion Yahoo! accounts, more attacks will go directly to individuals who are using IoT devices, such as security cameras. Companies involved in the service or production of these devices will need to develop security measures to address heightening concerns.

Vendors will be used to attack major corporations. Companies of all sizes must not only focus on their security measures, but also the need to set guidelines for third parties like vendors and contractors, according to the University of San Diego. Most companies do not have a dedicated team to manage contractors, a Ponemon Institute Research Report reveals. With cyber criminals becoming increasingly sophisticated, companies need to be more aware of threats that can come through third parties.

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Rich Banta

Rich Banta

Managing Member at Lifeline Data Centers
Rich is responsible for Compliance and Certifications, Data Center Operations, Information Technology, and Client Concierge Services. Rich has an extensive background in server and network management, large scale wide-area networks, storage, business continuity, and monitoring. Rich is a former CTO of a major health care system. Rich is hands-on every day in the data centers. He also holds many certifications, including: CISA – Certified Information Systems Auditor CRISC – Certified in Risk & Information Systems Management CDCE – Certified Data Center Expert CDCDP – Certified Data Center Design Professional