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INTEllIGENT COMPUTING | SECURITY

hyBrId NETWOrkS STrETCh aTTaCk SUrfaCES SECUrITy GOES aUTOMaTEd OUT Of NECESSITy
The attack surface — the total sum of the ways an organi- As mentioned earlier, networks are growing increasingly
zation is susceptible to cyberattack — is like a balloon. It complex, meaning that IT security teams must contend
expands with the introduction of new attack vectors and with growing amounts of data that needs to be
attack targets, like extensions into virtual, cloud and op- contextualized, analyzed and acted upon. At the same
erational technology environments. It contracts with the time, the industry is suffering from a worrying talent
good cyber hygiene and risk reduction. The larger your shortage, which means that there are fewer skilled
attack surface, the more likely it is to pop. workers available to manage these issues. This is creating
To control an attack surface that encompasses hybrid an environment where attack vectors abound, increasing
networks and that’s affected by a constantly evolving the organization’s risk of attack.
threat landscape, organizations will need to unify visibility As a result, in 2018 we expect to see a surge in the
and centralize management. Gaining seamless visibility adoption of automated solutions, particularly for integrated
across physical IT and OT networks, as well as virtual and analytical workflows. These can deliver actionable
cloud networks, will give them a holistic foundation on intelligence to security practitioners of what to focus on —
which to build a security program ready to address an such as vulnerabilities posing an imminent threat — what
agile threat landscape. tools are at their disposal to take action and tracking the
While different technologies, processes and teams may workflow to ensure tasks are carried out to completion.
be involved to secure various types of networks, attackers
don’t pay attention to such divisions. If anything, they ThE SCalES TIP TO ThE ClOUd
exploit these divisions in security management, and simply At present, most firms are in a transition phase, with
follow the path of least resistance to reach their intended networks made up of a hybrid of physical, virtual and
target, no matter where the attack originates. In 2018, we’ll multi–cloud environments. 2018 is set to be the tipping
likely see attackers leverage hybrid network connectivity point, as corporate networks become predominantly or
to infiltrate cloud and OT networks where traditional entirely virtual or cloud–based.
cybersecurity measures are still being fleshed out. Organizations will need to be sure they understand and
can support the shared responsibility model of the cloud,
ONGOING EvOlUTION Of dISTrIBUTEd aTTaCkS in that the cloud service provider is responsible for security
While NotPetya was originally dubbed a ransomware of the cloud while the organization is responsible for
attack, seemingly a new iteration of WannaCry, it was security in the cloud. The assumption that cloud networks
pretty lousy at the ransom part. What it and WannaCry are inherently secure needs to be overcome, and security
demonstrated, though, was the distributed attack model teams need to have the means to understand how traffic
on which modern ransomware relies. It targets as many moves into, out of and within cloud networks to put the
victims possible, looking for low–hanging fruit, so attacks proper security controls in place.
can be carried out easily and automatically, maximizing The importance of automation, as mentioned above,
the attacker’s ROI. Ransomware is a perfect fit for this becomes even more important in cloud–networks. The
model, in that any target can be extorted for payment. elasticity of clouds makes their security management too
Now that the distributed attacks have proven global– much to handle via manual processes. If organizations are
reach capabilities, we’re sure to see more mass–scale aiming for a complete move to the cloud, they need to
attacks in 2018. ensure that security programs are poised to support the
The good news about the distributed attack model? approach.
Cybercriminals sell or share proven attack methods, such
as vulnerability exploits, to carry out distributed attacks. INCrEaSEd aTTaCkS ON OPEraTIONal
Again, this practice gives them a better ROI than developing TEChNOlOGy
new, native exploits or exploits for a specific target. It also The convergence of IT and OT networks presents several
means a relatively small number of vulnerabilities exploits advantages in terms of productivity, ease of management
are being used and reused. If vulnerability management and cost–effectiveness. But it has also introduced new
programs can take a threat–centric approach and focus on cyber risks to critical infrastructure organizations such as
this subset of vulnerabilities, they’ll have a greater impact utilities, energy producers and manufacturers that could
on their organization’s security than if they targeted only have very real impacts on uptime, human safety and the
CVSS critical vulnerabilities. environment.

| A CyberMedia Publication www.dqindia.com January, 2018 | 17