Advanced Persistent Threat Threatens Digital SecurityThe worry over security is at its highest level in history. Corporations and manufacturers have full-time staff and departments fighting to eliminate vulnerabilities and safeguard company secrets and information.

Some organizations conduct regularly scheduled computer forensic analysis on employee’s business devices. Forensics consultants are on retainer and computer forensic services are a line item on the budget.

Likewise, company issued cell phones are collected and routine mobile phone hack detection and mobile phone spyware detection are conducted. While employees might take advantage of a vulnerability in the system, companies are also concerned with security breaches that are unknown to employees such as spyware being uploaded inadvertently by an employee.

The idea of corporate espionage mostly conjures up visions of covert operations to STEAL something – ideas, clients, proprietary information of some sort. While that is the common conception, it is not the only type of corporate espionage that is damaging.

A new advanced persistent threat (APT) called DarkHotel is taking another avenue. The APT targets traveling C-Level corporate executives. Through a vulnerability in hotel’s Wi-Fi networks, DarkHotel is able to infiltrate executive’s devices and instead of collecting data, the APT injects a few lines of malicious code in order to infect the company networks and systems.

Users have been attacked and compromised throughout the world with reports coming from the United States, Japan, mainland China, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland and South Korea.

Data travels fast – and so do the dangers that can be transmitted without the users’ knowledge.

Digital forensics, for computers, cell phones and other devices is one step toward protection along with security training. Contact to see if routine forensic analyses should be added to your budget.

-Brenda McGinley, CEO, All in Investigations, All in Investigations