As if a pandemic wasn't enough to disrupt business operations, the year 2020 also brought in new and even bigger cybersecurity threats. And because cybersecurity threats will always be present and ever changing, businesses must be able to adapt in order to secure their data and protect their customers.

The coronavirus pandemic of 2020 has upended the way organizations operate. Employees were ordered to work from home, while IT departments were forced to refocus their strategy toward protecting not just office IT systems but also a distributed workforce’s computers and networks.

Phishing scams, which use fraudulent emails to distribute malware and trick victims into giving away information, are the most common tactics used by cybercriminals today. After all, it’s much easier to exploit human ignorance and unpreparedness than the cutting-edge cybersecurity controls that many organizations have in place today.

Business email compromise (BEC) attacks are exploits where cybercriminals get unauthorized access to a business email account to steal the owner’s identity. The compromised accounts are then used for carrying out highly convincing social engineering scams against employees, partners, and customers.

Ransomware attacks are widespread and usually take victims by complete surprise. Then, they’re left struggling to make the choice between paying the ransom or risk losing their data for good. Fortunately, there are several warning signs that cybercriminals are already targeting your network.

Remote work has been the norm in many New Jersey businesses for some years now; as of 2019, the Garden State was already one of the top 15 states where one could easily find remote jobs.

However, other businesses were far from prepared when they were suddenly ordered to send their employees home in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Phishing scams used to be easy to spot because of their incredible claims. Take for example the infamous Nigerian prince scam, which asks victims to disclose financial information so that the royal prince may purportedly deposit his overflowing cash into their bank accounts.

First came the coronavirus pandemic, which forced companies all over the world to shift to remote work. Then came security experts’ warnings that cybercriminals would take advantage of the situation, given that many of the devices used at home don’t have strict security measures that office devices have.

The Garden State has had its share of data breaches, ransomware attacks, and other cybersecurity horror stories. Here are two of the well-known ones:

2017 Equifax data breach — The single largest data breach of 2017 happened to the multinational consumer credit reporting agency.

Imagine buying a safe for your valuables. To your surprise, there’s no lock on the door. That safe is your computer if you don’t put a password to protect it.

When you put a lock on your safe, you put a layer of security. Add a latch bolt or a thumbprint reader, and you double your protection.