Cyber security has never been a hotter topic. The palpable panic experienced by many an IT Manager in the aftermath of the Ashely Madison hack drove the frenzy around security. In our latest whitepaper, 5 Must Watch Technologies and How to Win With them, we took a look at how businesses can protect themselves from Zero Day Threats.
Our research found that 15 million new malware samples (a rate of 160,000 new samples daily) were generated in 2014 (Panda Security). Additionally, Palo Alto Networks is finding 30,000 new pieces of Zero Day malware on a daily basis, up 50% from last year. Yikes!
What is a Zero Day Attack?
Before we delve into how to prevent a Zero Day attack, let’s take a moment to define the attack. The Zero Day is a period of vulnerability when a hole exists in the network’s security, unknown to the vendor, until after it’s exploited by hackers. Depending on the size & type of your business, a hacker could have spent days or months attempting to find that vulnerability in the network. Once they do, your network is poised for an attack, and your customers’ sensitive information is in the hands of the highest bidder.
What follows is a mad rush by the security vendor to patch the area and stop the mass information bleed. Sometimes there just isn’t enough time…
3 Steps to Prevent a Zero Day Attack
Taking a preventive approach when it comes to Zero Day Threat protection doesn’t have to be a long and arduous process. Here are the 3 steps you can take to prevent a Zero Day attack in your network’s security.
- Think like a hacker
Never make the assumption that your network is safe, just because you recently updated the security. Just like a hacker persistently probes the network to discover a vulnerability, you need to do the same. The only way to prevent an attack is to know about it in the first place. - Pick the right security vendor
You’re only going to be as good as the security vendor you choose. Not all vendors offer the same Zero Day Threat protection capabilities, so make sure you do a good deal of research before picking a vendor. - Attend our webinar
Our webinar “The Business of Security: True Zero Day Threat Protection” aims to educate IT Directors and Managers on today’s threat landscape, preventive vs. detection strategies, and Palo Alto Network’s WildFire firewall technology. Register for the webinar here.
To learn more about Lanworks & the services we offer, check out our Network Solutions for more information.
