EDITOR ’ S QUESTION
HOW FAR IS THREAT INTELLIGENCE DATA VITAL TO A SUCCESSFUL AND WELL-ROUNDED CYBER STRATEGY ?
As technology progresses , data breaches continue to skyrocket and this isn ’ t going to slow down anytime soon . It is predicted that by the end of 2023 the cost of cybercrime is going to hit just under £ 6.5 trillion . Acquiring threat intelligence data is a primary step in preventing cyberattacks and web scraping should be the method of choice for modern data-driven businesses . This is according to Andrius Palionis , VP of Enterprise Sales at Oxylabs .
Threat intelligence gives businesses the tools to defend their networks and protect their data . A wellrounded cybersecurity strategy uses threat intelligence to automatically receive cyberthreat data , enabling organisations to prepare action plans based on possible attack scenarios .
“ Cyberattacks are growing in frequency , severity and sophistication as the demand for data grows ,” said Palionis . “ Common factors leading to data breaches include engaging third-party services , network operation risks , extensive cloud migration , increased system complexity and compliance failures . These data breaches not only damage the reputation of companies , but also cause severe financial distress .”
According to a recent IBM report , the average cost of a data breach is £ 150 per record . With an average size of 25,575 records lost per incident , a cyberattack has the potential to cost a business £ 3.92 million .
“ This is a stark reminder that businesses of all sizes are at risk of a data breach and subsequent financial loss . As cybercriminals gain expertise and attacks become more frequent , companies risk facing serious consequences that may negatively impact customer trust .
“ Companies must invest in threat intelligence to stay ahead of criminals and keep their data safe . In addition to investing in threat intelligence , businesses must implement a multi-layered security approach to identify and mitigate cyberthreats before they can cause damage . Strategies may include effective data governance and processing , careful planning , analysis and dissemination ,” said Palionis .
Quality intelligence that is current and relevant has proven to be vital to the success of cybersecurity strategies . Cyberthreat intelligence targets identifies , manages and minimises cyberattacks by gathering information from across the web , including darknet forums and websites . Cybersecurity experts are adopting web scraping to obtain high-level insights and extract this important information from target websites .
Palionis continued : “ Web scraping processes involve sending data requests to the target website server and extracting and parsing data into an easily readable format followed by detailed analysis . Cybercriminals attempt to escape detection by identifying cybersecurity company servers and blocking their IP addresses . To address this issue , data centre and residential proxies are being used to maintain anonymity , avoid geolocation restrictions and balance server requests to prevent bans .
“ Managing threats and data processing can benefit significantly from effective data governance . By implementing key governance practices , businesses can create value , improve productivity and increase data safety .” Palionis concluded : “ Threat intelligence forms the backbone of an overall strategy that gives businesses the tools to defend their networks and protect their data .”
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