You've Got Mail!

AS AN INTEGRAL COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION TOOL FOR ANY ORGANISATION ACROSS THE GLOBE, EMAIL REMAINS AN ATTRACTIVE ATTACK VECTOR FOR CYBERCRIMINALS. HUSNI HAMMOUD, GENERAL MANAGER, MIDDLE EAST, CEE AND TURKEY, BARRACUDA NETWORKS, DISCUSSES HOW ORGANISATIONS CAN STAY ONE STEP AHEAD OF THE BAD GUYS.

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Email continues to be the most common attack vector. What are the most common mistakes end-users are committing when it comes to email security?

The most common mistake is failing to identify a phishing email. Once an end-user clicks on a link in one of these emails, replies to it, or even simply forward it to somebody else, it will start a chain of events that can lead to email account compromise, business fraud or more.

Many users today are also using a unified inbox on their mobile device, which combines emails from business and personal accounts into a single list making it difficult to identify the source of each email. Cyberattackers are taking advantage of this and are now starting to subvert users via their personal email account, therefore, bypassing all email security their organisation has put in place.

What best practices should IT security leaders take to correct these mistakes and to strengthen their security postures?

Email threats are continuously evolving and are increasingly becoming more sophisticated. In addition, more and more cybercriminals are using social engineering techniques to bypass traditional gateway security defences. Organisations need to invest in additional layers of security such as those provided by Barracuda Sentinel and Barracuda PhishLine, which extend email protection to include inbox defence, fraud protection and security awareness training so that endusers within the organisation are fully protected from the latest threats.