Ransomware attacks are on the rise and small businesses are on the menu. The 2023 State of Ransomware report from Malwarebytes Labs finds that the United States saw 1,462 attacks between July 1, 2022, and June 31, 2023. This accounted for 43% of all ransomware attacks around the world, with these attacks doubling in frequency…
With Cyber Security Awareness month set to kick off on October 1, a new survey finds that the boards of U.S. companies should pay attention. The Wall Street Journal reports that an analysis by software provider Diligent found 88% of companies listed on the S&P 500 have no directors who are cyber security experts. The survey defined…
Social engineering may be behind two high-profile attacks on casino operators Ceasar’s and MGM. In an 8-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Ceasar’s Entertainment reported “a social engineering attack on an outsourced IT support vendor used by the Company.” Hackers were able to steal data from the Ceasar’s loyalty database around September 7,…
Should you report a cyber attack attempt? Even a small, seemingly insignificant one? The answer is almost always yes. There are two reasons to report a cyber attack. The first is to show cyber criminals that you take security seriously. The second is to gain safety in numbers. The more people who are aware of…
September 2023 marks the 20th anniversary of the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) REALTOR® Safety Month. With more than 1,5 million members, the NAR is the largest trade association in the United States, and it has extensive experience working with real estate professionals, law enforcement and government officials to improve on-the-job safety. It should surprise…
The New Haven, Connecticut, school district lost more than $6 million to cyber thieves in a Business Email Compromise (BEC) attack that was discovered only after the real vendor asked why they had not been paid. ABC News provided details on the attack, which began in May and demonstrated a high level of patience on the…
Real estate agents nationwide need to be on alert for the Vacant Land Scam. A California Department of Real Estate (DRE) advisory issued in July noted what the DRE called “a sharp increase in real estate fraud involving identity theft and the sale of vacant land and unencumbered property.” Similar vacant land scams have been reported throughout…
People are often anxious about the security of their personal information and online accounts. Cybercriminals are finding new ways to invade your privacy which is why you need comprehensive protection to keep you safe online. We spend a lot of time on this blog discussing SMB security. However “all security is personal”, even at the…
WormGPT, a new, AI-powered tool for pretexting attacks, is attracting subscribers among the cyber criminal community, according to reporting from ZD.net. The capabilities of this tool, which uses similar technology to large learning models like ChatGPT, are grounds for significant concern for all business owners. Researchers from SlashNext were able to access the tool and…
Online cyber security employee training courses from Protect Now have been certified by the International Distance Education Certification Center (IDECC). This certification represents a critical step toward offering continuing education (CE) credits for licensed real estate professionals who take Protect Now’s Cyber Social Identity (CSI) Protection Certification courses online. IDECC is an internationally recognized standards and…
