If you don’t where it is, you can’t protect it.
Do you know where ALL your organisation’s data is – not physically, but on which web and cloud services?
Here’s the problem. If you don’t where it is, then you can’t protect it. The secondary problem is finding out, because not everyone in your organisation will be onboard. It is common for people to sign up to web services because they offer something useful that helps them do their job.
They sign up using their email address and creating a password. There is the first headache – how does anyone track what has been signed up to across your organisation, let alone who has access to it? If that person leaves, no one will change the account credentials if they don’t know about it, but your ex-colleague still has access.
Secondly, what data do they upload? Is that data that you have a legal or moral responsibility for?
There’s nothing noble about Nobelium.
This isn’t theory – it’s real. USAID is a pretty important US organisation – promoting democracy and human rights around the world. Turns out, someone there was using a well-known email database tool called Constant Contact. But their account wasn’t well protected. Worse still, their account had a huge mailing set up, and of course, it had all the official USAID templates.
So, these Nobelium people, allegedly a Russian state-sponsored hacker group, compromised the Constant Contact account and sent a bulletin out. The bulletin contained malware that allowed the hackers to take command and control over victims computers. Ironically the fake email alleged interference in the US federal elections.
So, what can you do?
The first step is knowing what SaaS tools your people are using. We call this SHADOW IT and it is inevitable. Rather than stopping it, the job IT has is to identify it and manage it. The second step is to secure those platforms. That’s why our KARE for Security S2 plan contains a useful tool to help you identify what services your people are using.
Refer : What We Know About The Apparent Russian Hack Exploiting USAID : NPR
Webinar Replay -Enhancing Your Security Posture with Microsoft Secure Score
This webinar replay covers the essentials of Microsoft Secure Score. Secure Score is a powerful tool designed to help businesses assess and improve their security across Microsoft 365 workloads. We will explore what Microsoft Secure Score is, why it is crucial for...
(Finally) 3 Things I like about the New Outlook
I’ve finally switched to the New Outlook after a few false starts and here are a few things that I like.Improved "New Outlook" Copilot Features Copilot in the old desktop version of Outlook doesn’t seem to have had any improvements for over a year.However, the New...
Microsoft OneDrive Changes – How will they impact you?
Microsoft have just shared changes that are coming to OneDrive as soon as June. Microsoft 365 Roadmap | Microsoft 365 Many users have personal OneDrive accounts as well as business ones. If OneDrive detects that a business user also has a personal account, it will,...
April’s AI Advances
April’s AI journey began when xAI acquired the social media platform X in an all-stock deal, valuing xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion. The merger aims to combine data, models, compute, distribution, and talent to advance xAI's AI ambitions. xAI's chatbot “Grok”...
What does the end of support for Windows 10 mean for me?
The End of an Era: Windows 10 Support is Ending What You Need to Know At the risk of being repetitive, it is important to remind readers that it’s the end of the road for Windows 10. Support for Windows 10 ends on October 14. After this date, Microsoft will no...
Note: ADOBE License Changes
Understanding the Latest Adobe License Changes with the VIP Marketplace In recent months, Adobe has introduced significant changes to its licensing programs, particularly with the VIP Marketplace. They tell us that these updates are designed to streamline the...
What is “Dead Internet Theory”?
The Dead Internet Theory: A Modern Conspiracy In recent years, there has been a somewhat weird and unsettling theory that has emerged from the depths of internet forums and conspiracy circles. It is called the "Dead Internet Theory" The basic idea is that the...
Widespread Microsoft 365 lockouts
If you were forced to change your Microsoft password over the Easter Weekend, you weren’t alone. There have been a significant number of Microsoft Account Password Resets for 'suspicious activity' There are numerous posts around the internet suggesting this is...
Kinetics KARE Foundation Security Notice
KARE Security Update Change Notice In response to increased cyber-activity, Kinetics is planning to roll out two changes across all KARE Foundation subscribers. This change only impacts subscribers on KARE Foundation or KARE Security Plus plans.1. Multifactor...
Teams Tip! Keep your notifications private and not visible especially when on calls or in presentations!
Teams lets you hide message previews but still get the alert – particularly handy when you are showing others content on your screen or presenting. You can go from this: to All you need to do is Click … Settings and more next to your photo Click Settings Click...