DeOS Is The New Threat

Global networking firm Cisco has brought out a report revealing a new security threat perception - Destruction of Service, or DeOS:

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Several years before the modern day cyber attacks like WannaCry became norm, there were intrusions like Denial of Service (DoS) and its more refined version of Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS). There were also umpteen number of malicious programs that could infect systems and render them invalid for periods of time like viruses, Trojans, malware, spyware, phishing, vishing, ‘Man in the Middle’ attacks, rogue software, etc. But, there has emerged a more potent, highly destructive concept that global firm Cisco has laid bare - Destruction of Service (DeOS) attacks. Cisco’s 2017 Midyear Security Report released recently points out to the possibility of cyber criminals giving final shapes to DeOS attacks, which could have graver implications like denying access to a service or even deactivating a service. Such attacks, says the report, “could eliminate organizations’ backups and safety nets, required to restore systems and data after an attack. Also, with the advent of the Internet of Things (IoT), key industries are bringing more operations online, increasing attack surfaces and the potential scale and impact of these threats.”

MORE DAMAGING

The report says the recent ransomware attacks like WannaCry and Nyetya are indicative of the rapid spread and wide impact of attacks that look like traditional ransomware, but are much more destructive. These attacks, which are basically DeOS attacks, can be far more damaging, leaving businesses with no way to recover, adds the report.