The Evolving Threat: Combat training for the new era of malicious code

Today attacks are profit driven, not glory and fame. The more organized attempts for financial gain are harnessing intellectual talent within the hacker community to devise new attack strategies and innovative malicious code (malcode) that invades enterprises systems without detection. Information security solutions used to protect organizations from hackers intending to generate front page news about a successful denial of service attack or a web site defacement. In the new era of Internet threats, attackers are motivated by profit or politics and use cutting edge technology to probe networks undetected for as long as possible. The longer attacks go unnoticed, the more opportunity for success in data theft and other profit-generating activities. Figure A illustrates how today’s attacks are different from earlier attacks over the last couple of decades.

Organizations should now be examining the adequacy of their existing security platforms in the face of new, profit-driven attacks. This whitepaper will provide further detail on new evolving threats using malicious code – an area where many firms have unprecedented levels of exposure and risk.