By Mark Nyquist ‐ Information Systems Director, Epicor HCM
In the wake of the recent security breaches (see links below), I’d like to take just a quick moment to remind everyone that extra vigilance and scrutiny are becoming vital for the security of work and home environments.
I’m sure that many of you have already received notices from retailers you might be associated with (Target, USBank, BestBuy, etc..) stating that their email database for marketing newsletters was breached. The fallout of this is still being explored, but rest assured that will lead to very targeted ‘spear phishing’ attacks in the very near future. If your name and email address was disclosed in this breach, you’ll most likely start to receive emails that look very much like the newsletters you are used to seeing with proper logos, graphics, content, personalization to your name, etc.. – but with links that may go scam sites. Be extremely cautious when emails ask you to ‘change your password’, ‘update your credit card information’, etc.. When in doubt, look up the customer service number for the retailer, and contact them directly asking if the email is legitimate or if you might be able to perform the requested action over the phone.
In a very real example of the damage targeted attacks such as this can cause, look no further than the recent compromise of the RSA security company. Several users at RSA received a targeted email containing an Excel spreadsheet labeled ‘2011 Recruitment Plan’. Even though their junk-filter caught the email, one user still pulled it out of junk and opened it. The spreadsheet had an embedded flash object which executed a zero day exploit (meaning their antivirus program did not yet have a defense for this). The trojan then installed remote control software and the rest was history. Here’s where the story should hit home though: The attackers were then able to leverage this foothold to steal the master encryption key for millions of two-factor security FOBs. There are some government agencies that relied (note the past tense) on these for securing top secret data. The brand reputation of this company has now plummeted and security conscious customers are flocking to other solutions. The harm this one person caused will have major ramifications to the financial future of an entire company.
Takeaway
- Only open email attachments from trusted people, and only when the content seems relevant. When in doubt, call the sender and ask for confirmation.
- When possible, don’t click on links in emails. Instead, use your own bookmarks to trusted places and navigate to the destination. If this is not possible, scrutinize links (right click, copy – paste into notepad) to make sure the go to legitimate places.
- Educate family and friends on the dangers that will certainly escalate in the near future.
Epsilon Breach