Warning: Cyber ​​attacks targeting web applications increase rapidly in 2019

A new global study conducted by cyber security organization SonicWall has given alarming results: The number of cyber attacks targeting web applications in general has increased by 52% in five years. 2019. More seriously, the majority of attacks are made with the engine to steal financial information and personal data, causing billions of dollars in damage worldwide.

Specifically, popular web applications with millions of regular users today such as Slack, Microsoft 365, G Suite, Salesforce and Dropbox are the most visited target by hackers in 2019. A large number of users are part of the fact that these web applications are basically used to provide the first cloud-based user interface. These two factors combine to make them a top target of hackers, and once successfully penetrated, the opportunity for them to gain access to valuable personal data stores of users is endless. same big.

Besides the aforementioned cloud web applications mentioned above, common web application platforms are also the favorite target of hacker attacks. They are important tools for many organizations and businesses that handle communications and transactions, but rarely invest in secure design. In addition, exploiting web applications is quite easy, so it is increasingly becoming a popular way for cyber criminals to find valuable data.

According to cybersecurity expert from Trend Micro Dawn Smeaton, there are three fairly simple, low-cost methods that organizations can take to improve web application security.

1. First, they need to expand their malware detection capabilities and can use automated tools to identify common cryptographic errors, or manually check them by experts who know the site works. how and understand how it can be exploited.
2. Second, organizations need to increase protection by adding web application firewalls (WAF) and attack detection and prevention systems.
3. Third, focus should be on visibility to make it easier to identify attacks as well as to prioritize vulnerabilities.

In addition to statistics on the number of cyber attacks targeting web applications in 2019, SonicWall's overall report on cyber security threats in general has a few notable points as follows:

1. According to the report, a total of 9.9 million malware attacks were recorded in 2019.
2. Of those, 187.9 million were detected as ransomware attacks.
3. The threats related to encryption increased by 27%, jeopardizing the local security system of organizations and businesses.
4. The number of IoT attacks has increased by 5% compared to 2018, or 34.3 million recorded cases in 2019.
5. The number of cryptocurrency-related attacks dropped 78% in the second half of 2019.