No nation, organisation or individual is immune to cybercrime, and as the web’s influence on our lives grows exponentially, so will the levels of cybercrime activity across the world.

The evolution of technology has created a vast landscape for cybercriminals to exploit, and they are continually developing sophisticated methods and tools to infiltrate even the most secure systems.

Cyberattacks have become an unfortunate reality for businesses and society as a whole. From small start-ups to the largest Fortune 500 companies, and from government agencies to non-profit entities, no entity or individual is safe from this scourge.

A wide range of attacks

These attacks come in various forms, including data breaches, ransomware attacks and phishing scams, and there’s a possibility that South Africa is a target depending on the alignment from a geopolitical standpoint. The consequences of these attacks are severe, ranging from financial losses and reputational damage to legal liabilities and even national security risks.

Take South Africa, for instance. Security companies around the world believe South Africa to be in the top five most attacked countries globally, and there’s no doubt that attacks are growing in volume and frequency in the region.

There’s a possibility that South Africa is a target because it aligns with certain things from a geopolitical standpoint. And if bad actors target a government institution, it’s not necessarily about financial gain. Sometimes it’s just about rattling the cage and fuelling worry and uncertainty.

Cybercrime as a service

Furthermore, the problem is not necessarily always nation-state attacks. There are continuing and growing threats from criminal groups using ransomware and extortionware as a service. Cybercrime as a service (CaaS) is a major contributor to the vulnerability of companies today. Cybercriminals offer a wide range of hacking tools, services, and resources for rent or sale on the dark web.

This business model democratises cybercrime, enabling individuals with little to no technical expertise to launch sophisticated attacks.

The accessibility and affordability of CaaS offerings has expanded the pool of potential attackers. Criminals can scale their operations easily. They can hire additional services as needed, such as botnets for distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, making it challenging for any company to defend against these coordinated assaults.

It also provides anonymity, as CaaS providers mostly operate on the dark web, making it difficult for law enforcement agencies to track and apprehend them. CaaS offerings are also continually updated and improved, incorporating the latest exploits and attack techniques. This enables attackers to stay one step ahead of security measures.

Tools for good … and bad

As technology advances, so do the tools available to both defenders and attackers. Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are playing an increasingly prominent role in cybersecurity. Unfortunately, these same technologies can also be harnessed by cybercriminals.

One example we all know about is ChatGPT, a generative AI model developed by OpenAI.

ChatGPT clones and other tools have the potential to be used for both offensive and defensive purposes in cybersecurity. For instance, cybercriminals can employ AI-driven chatbots to conduct highly convincing spear-phishing attacks. These chatbots can mimic human communication and social engineering tactics, making them almost indistinguishable from legitimate ones. This is a major problem.

On the defensive side, these tools can be used to enhance threat detection and incident response. They can analyse vast amounts of data to identify patterns and anomalies that human analysts might miss. This can help entities proactively defend against attacks.

A rising awareness

It’s not all doom and gloom though. We are seeing a massive increase in our local region when it comes to cybersecurity and the way in which companies are starting to take it a lot more seriously. Prospects we’ve spoken to who claimed they were comfortable with their security strategy, saying they’d perhaps look at upgrading in the next year, are calling us a few months later and asking to start the process immediately. This is definitely due to the massive rise in attempted attacks being seen.

The risk of falling victim to cybercrime will always be there, but it is important to remember that while a person, organisation,or city could be at risk of an attack, if they are prepared and ready to defend against it, the situation is less dire. This is why having a highly effective security strategy is critical.

This means businesses must adopt a proactive and holistic approach to cybersecurity, continually evolving their defences to keep pace with the ever-changing threat landscape. To do this effectively, having a partner that has the requisite skills and expertise is key, as most organisations simply cannot afford to have large, dedicated security teams.

Companies need to make sure that they understand where they are trying to get to from a security perspective and where the risk is for their business. They then need to find the right partner who can guide them through that process and facilitate the necessary changes.

About Arctic Wolf
Arctic Wolf is the market leader in security operations. Using the cloud-native Arctic Wolf platform, we help companies end cyber risk by providing security operations as a concierge service. Highly trained triage and concierge security experts work as an extension of internal teams to provide 24×7 monitoring, detection and response, ongoing risk management and security awareness training to give organisations the protection, resilience and guidance they need to defend against cyber threats. For more information, connect with Arctic Wolf on Facebook, X, LinkedIn and YouTube.