With the right awareness and systems in place cyberattacks can be prevented. Elaborate (200 Words)
Refer - Financial Express
Enrich the answer from other sources, if the question demands.
IAS Parliament 6 years
KEY POINTS
· With connectivity and increased sharing of data, we are more than ever susceptible to such attacks.
· With sufficient awareness and precaution, individuals and organisations can protect themselves from cyberattacks and that is the key.
· Cybersecurity is also about risk management. It is not just big organisations that are being targeted, small organisations with just 4-5 systems and even individuals with supposedly little or no valuable information are the targets.
· Perpetual targets of social engineering and phishing attacks looking to trick us into opening infected e-mails, web pages and links.
· While being connected may be empowering, it can cause serious privacy concerns. News of fitness apps giving away private information such as location, movement patterns and preferred routes is unsettling.
· This information can be critical when it pertains to military or law enforcement agencies.
· Preventing a cyberattack will necessitate a change in attitude of individuals as well as organisations.
· Taking small incremental steps and awareness is the key. We need to have a keen understanding of the risk factors, stay aware of the latest frauds and their modus operandi.
· Limit social media posts to avoid sharing personal information, shouldn’t share confidential information such as passwords and PINs, and use up-to-date anti-viruses and original software, along with other available safety and security tools when going online.
· Dealing with cybersecurity also calls for a strategy towards risk mitigation and contingency planning.
· A one-off approach towards risk mitigation and dealing with attacks is unlikely to be effective in the fight against cyberthreats.
· Every threat, every incident should be viewed as a stepping stone to check preparedness and improve security standards.
· To be effective in dealing with cyberthreats, the entire exercise needs to be a sustained and proactive process, and not just a reflexive one. The same is true for individuals, as well as organisations of all shapes and sizes.
