High Tech: Cybersecurity’s Biggest Target

    A recent report sheds concerning light on the current state of cybersecurity. This Threat Report, courtesy of Fastly’s Next-Gen WAF, reveals that High Tech is the most targeted sector, accounting for 46% of NLX-tagged attack traffic. Fastly’s Network Learning Exchange (NLX) shares critical knowledge of attack sources across its customer network, aiming at pre-emptive security.

    Anonymously collected through its customer base, NLX’s data points towards a clear escalating threat. These aren’t isolated attacks: 69% of targeted IPs are aimed at multiple customers, and 64% strike at diverse industries. This pattern unambiguously demonstrates that cybercriminals aren’t choosing victims coincidentally – they strategically choose their targets.

    Of the attack types, traversal attacks emerge as the most common, standing at approximately 32% of analyzed NLX attacks. Close on its heels are SQL Injection attacks, which account for 28%. There’s an alarming prevalence of out-of-band (OOB) callbacks in NLX attack payloads, with Log4j JNDI lookups ranking as the most common.

    Further still, the report exposes an overlooked side of Cloud service providers. Autonomous Systems (AS) analysis illustrated that these providers accounted for a significant portion of NLX traffic. The trend, coupled with prevalent OOB callbacks, paints a grim picture of the cloud hosting landscape.

    However, Fastly’s versatile Next-Gen WAF provides solutions as well as warnings. It leverages data to improve detections and tighten IP restrictions, bolstering cybersecurity as it adapts. By monitoring out-of-band callback domains, it outlines the methodology in ongoing attacks, enabling strategic countermeasures.

    Fastly’s NLX significantly benefits from the network effect. By sharing anonymized attack data with all customers, it fosters a collective defense against cyber threats. Next-Gen WAF protects over 90,000 apps and APIs and screens an astonishing 4.1 trillion requests per month, placing it at the frontline of real-world cybersecurity.

    The onus is on us to be on guard. The relentless assault demands more than just increased defenses. Unified efforts and robust services like NLX offer us a chance to stand our ground amidst the unfolding cyber warfare. As the High Tech industry faces increasing threats, the need for preemptive measures and consistent vigilance cannot be overstated.

If you enjoyed this article, please check out our other articles on CyberNow