The Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA) identifies the following types of malicious cyber-related activities:

  • Hacking
  • Malicious code
  • Loss of intellectual property
  • Phishing
  • Denial of service
  • Insider damage

Pick one or several of these areas of cyber threats and discuss.

Intellectual property threat can be a type of malicious attack in many forms. It can range from stealing ideas, to copyrights, to trade secrets. Due to the increase in the use of technologies, the loss of intellectual property is much easier and much more at risk. The loss of this property has the potential to bring down a company or organization depending on the scale and what was stolen. It can result in hundreds of millions of dollars lost if no precautions are taken to prevent this. Training is one way to prevent this. Even tho this sounds simple and basic it is very important. Human error can just be the first step in allowing a threat to occur. Thieves can prey on vulnerabilities and exploit them for their benefit.

Phishing is very popular in today’s day and age. It can be just from simple email from a Nigerian prince needing money until their inheritance comes in or a text from “UPS” saying your delivery information is wrong and needs to be corrected with contact information and social. While some may seem easy to catch this does not apply in all cases.  These types of threats have gotten cleverer and can be harder to spot. While most companies prevent such emails they will also test employees sending these types of emails to see who would fall for such things as a test. Recognizing a scam is one of the most important parts of examining all links sent to an email or inconsistencies. 

References:

Hopkins, M., Miranda, C., Rose, R., & Bungo, L. (2022, October 25). How to recognize and avoid phishing scams. Consumer Advice. https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-recognize-and-avoid-phishing-scams

What is intellectual property theft – IP theft definition, examples & more: Proofpoint us. Proofpoint. (2023, September 18). https://www.proofpoint.com/us/threat-reference/intellectual-property-theft