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The actions of cybercriminals are a growing reality in virtual environments - and what's worse, these threats are becoming increasingly sophisticated. In the business world, many companies have already been seriously damaged by advanced threats and targeted attacks. For this reason, knowing about the subject is a fundamental step towards protecting your data more effectively.

With this in mind, we've put together this post so that you understand once and for all what targeted attacks and advanced threats are and how to combat them. Check it out!

What are advanced threats and targeted attacks?

Advanced Persistent Threats (APT) and targeted attacks consist of cyber attacks that breach private networks, usually companies or government agencies, in order to steal data and strategic information about their structure, clients or users.

The difference between them is that advanced threats (APT) are usually attacks on large companies, countries and government agencies, with very well thought-out codes by developers, and are highly sophisticated. Targeted attacks, on the other hand, can target companies or individuals, with objectives ranging from fraud to data theft or malware. Both attacks, however, can have an ongoing effect, only being discovered long after the damage has already been done.

What types of advanced threats and targeted attacks exist?

Customized

Customized attacks are those in which criminals, after carrying out a thorough study of the network, carefully plan every detail and devise specific strategies to circumvent the network's defenses and exploit all the relevant data available there.

Surgical

In surgical attacks, on the other hand, targeted attacks and APTs are not spread across the internet. They have specific targets and are carefully delivered to their recipients. To this end, one of the main penetration vectors used are emails addressed to a single member of the company, who will spread them to other computers.

Highly sophisticated

Modern targeted attacks and APTs use highly sophisticated and complex techniques to hide from network defense mechanisms. For this reason, detecting this type of attack requires appropriate technological tools and advanced resources that provide good visibility of all points in your network.

The hallmark of sophisticated attacks is that, once the system has been hacked, they manage to change the appearance, protocols and ports of the software - and remain invisible for long periods, stealing all the information they can.

How can we combat these attacks?

There are a number of measures that help protect against these attacks. Some of them are:

• rely on a security solution: this can prevent unwanted access to the corporate network and this protection starts with the installation of a firewall. This security software must be installed on all devices connected to the same network;
• keeping software and firmware up to date: updates to all software and firmware play an important role because, as well as increasing the barriers at entry points, they correct any vulnerabilities that may exist in previous versions;
• limit employee access: to maintain security, it is recommended that employees have restricted access to the network, preventing possible viruses or attacks from entering the network more easily;
• making employees aware: raising awareness of this type of risk is essential so that everyone knows how to use the media properly and help prevent threats and attacks;
• avoid granting administrator privileges: so that fewer people have unrestricted access, only those who are extremely necessary should be administrators.

In the age of technology, it's hard to imagine a competitive business without the help of management software and other innovative tools linked to the internet. However, these benefits also bring greater responsibility in terms of security, given the vulnerability of exposing sensitive data on corporate networks.

Now that you know what advanced threats and targeted attacks are, you can start taking the appropriate measures to make your company increasingly protected. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn and stay up to date with other powerful IT tips.