We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: cyber-attacks aren’t limited to big corporations and government organizations. Verizon’s 2018 Data Breach Investigations Report states that 58%of data breaches in 2017 occurred at small businesses. And according to Verizon’s data, there are two specific hacking techniques on the rise today that small businesses should know about.
The first technique is point-of-sale (POS) system hacking. If you’re in the hospitality industry, this should definitely be on your radar. Verizon recorded 368 POS incidents in 2017, most instigated by hackers penetrating the system rather than employees making mistakes that opened up vulnerabilities. Usually, hackers will steal credentials directly from a POS service provider, which enables them to exploit the POS systems used by that provider’s customers.
The second is called financial pretexting. Instead of phishing a business and installing malware, attackers impersonate a high-level employee within an organization — often using a legitimate but compromised e-mail account — to steal funds or sensitive information from the company’s finance or HR department. As always, forewarned is forearmed. Equip your teams with the know-how to avoid these scams and you will be ahead of the game.
SmallBizTrends.com, 5/1/2018