At least 100 companies have been attacked by cybercrime group, FIN7 since 2015. But America’s businesses can breathe a sigh of relief as three of the high-ranking members of the group have been arrested for their alleged involvement multiple cyber attacks. In the space of just three years, the group stole more than 15 million customer card records from thousands of business in locations across the world. With cyber attacks on the increase, it’s vital you have effective cyber-security in place to protect the financial aspect of your business. But, are there some businesses which are more susceptible to be targeted than others?
Why target certain businesses?
FIN7’s most common targets have been businesses which operate in the restaurant, hospitality and gaming industries. This is because these industries rely heavily on customer interaction and sales, therefore when the hackers posed as customers, the business jumped at the chance to boost their sales. However, this eagerness led FIN7 to steal as much as $1 billion from multiple companies across the globe. By simply sending what appeared to be an innocent order to a restaurant or fast food chain via email, the group were able to infect the computer with malware. From there, they were able to compromise all other devices connected to the same network and access thousands of pieces of private and personal data.
Protecting your business’s finances
Globally, $600 billion was lost as a result of cybercrime in 2017. Therefore, all businesses should ensure they have a contingency plan in place which is utilized should they fall victim to hackers. This plan should provide your business with all it needs to know in order to continue trading and producing a turnover when your systems and network have been targeted. Be sure to include the measures you will take to minimize your losses, the timescale to resolve the problem and how the business will continue to operate in wake of the crime. Post being targeted, a formal financial meeting should be held where ways to increase your monetary situation and bolster your finances further is reviewed and agreed.
The future of your business
Just because three of the masterminds behind FIN7 are currently behind bars doesn’t mean that your business is entirely safe. It is unknown just how many perpetrators are involved in the group and whether they will continue to operate now that Dmytro Fedorov, Fedir Hladyr, and Andrii Kopakov have been caught. There’s also the possibility that another group or individual is waiting to pounce on unsuspecting businesses who may have let their guard down in the wake of these arrests. Therefore, to truly protect your business’s finances, only open attachments and links which have been sent to you via reputable sources and if you’re ever in doubt, get your IT department to investigate the correspondence in finer detail.
Cybercriminals Fin7 have conned millions out of unwitting businesses worldwide. While, the news that several of the groups ringleaders are in police custody is very much welcomed, businesses should ensure they have contingency plans in place to protect them from further attacks from similar attackers.
