Cybersecurity on the agenda at Comms Connect NZ

As the entry level for cybercrime decreases, and interconnectivity between devices increases, critical communications systems are becoming more vulnerable to cyber attacks. At Comms Connect New Zealand next month, attendees will hear from Vanessa Leite, Cyber Security Specialist at CyberCure, on some of the ways critical infrastructure can be attacked, and the strategies that can be put in place to prevent this.

Leite claims that attacks on critical infrastructure are on the rise, thanks in part to the unfortunate rise of malware-as-a-service (MaaS). For example, in December 2015 the Ukrainian power grid was hacked by a group allegedly linked to Russia, resulting in power outages for roughly 230,000 consumers for up to six hours. Broadband and P25 radio networks are also increasingly being targeted by distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, with one particular attack resulting in a network going down for two whole days. And just last year, Telstra was subject to two separate data breaches, which saw the personal details of thousands of customers and employees listed on hacking forums.

According to Leite, common attack vectors include phishing, compromised credentials, third-party compromise, misconfiguration, weakness exploitation and simple human error. It is thus essential that comms providers have a clear understanding of their attack surface, and that they build in resilience from the ground up — but remain prepared for the worst-case scenario.

For more cybersecurity tips, attend Leite’s presentation, ‘No honour among thieves: Cyber threats targeting critical comms’, at Comms Connect New Zealand on 4 June.