The State of Cybercrime in the Cloud

“As the world is increasingly interconnected, cybercrimes are also rapidly increasing”

Recently, there has been tremendous growth in cloud computing. Cloud computing brings out clarity by exchanging information which results in economies of scale not only for coinciding infrastructures but also shared utilities. As a result, the existence of transnational and multijurisdictional crimes are the issues that policymakers face. Cybercrime vulnerabilities in the cloud are examined following a short review of cloud computing’s evolution.

We recently arranged a podcast on Cybercrime in the cloud with Greg Foss, Principal Cloud Security Researcher at Lacework Labs. He talks about how cybercriminals are making profits from the cloud and its resources, how it is changing the landscape regarding cybercrime, and more.

 

Listen to the Full Podcast:

 

In this blog, we will talk about How the cloud is changing the landscape regarding cybercrime. Different types of attacks in the cloud? Crypto mining in the cloud? How are cybercriminals making a profit from compromised cloud resources? Steps to reduce security challenges faced in Cloud Environments. And a message from Greg to enterprises who want to safeguard themselves against cybercrimes. If you want to listen to the podcast, then click here.

So, Let’s get started!

How Is The Cloud Changing the Landscape Regarding Cybercrime?

During and after the pandemic, more and more companies are moving to the cloud. More and more businesses are deploying IT services and applications in this way as they seek simpler management, utility-based payments, and less reliance on traditional data centers and admin teams. It would be rare to find an organization that hasn’t adopted PaaS, IaaS, or SaaS for some of its hosting or business applications.

Along with this, cybercrime theft is omnipresent and is also growing speedily from time to time. The driving force of this is an increasingly versatile adversary, complete reliance on IT systems to run the business, and the growing technical complexity of platforms, applications, interactions, and devices. Also, there are simple reasons for this growth. The way cloud computing gives greater flexibility and functionality options to companies, in the same way, it can offer the same flexibility to cybercriminals and the pay-as-you-grow business model. According to this, cybercriminals also benefit from the billing of the cloud.

Types Of Attacks In The Cloud

There are various types of attacks in the cloud. Some of the most common attacks are Malware injection, Denial of Service (DoS), Side channel, Wrapping, Man-in-the-cloud, Advanced persistent threats (APTs), etc.

Crypto Mining In The Cloud?

The mining farms’ data centers dedicated to mining are called Cloud mining operations. It sells or leases hashing power to cryptocurrency miners. Mining equipment is hosted by a third-party and provides access to the rewards associated with the equipment. This is the main function of the service.

There are various advantages and disadvantages of cloud mining. For someone, the user should trust the cloud provider in a space ripe with scams and frauds. The user is not in control of the equipment or how it is used.

And the obvious advantages are that you don’t have to fill your home with computer equipment, not having to deal with the noise, the heat, the power consumption, and the upkeep of the mining equipment, and so on. Basically, you outsource the work.

How Are Cyber Criminals Making Profit From Compromised Cloud Resources?

Businesses and cybercriminals look at the cloud from the same perspective i.e. profit. Businesses looking to deploy the cloud to host applications, run shop fronts or applications backends, deliver websites, store and share files, etc. On the other hand, cybercriminals want to earn profit by hacking.

The ability to run a global business (legitimate or not) and deliver services, applications, manage databases, deliver content, run discussion boards and help desks are all business activities. These activities make up the criminal community that forms part of the international ecosystem.

It is true that mostly this is underground regardless of the dark web or not but the same ability businesses have to be global in reach and flexible in resourcing are available to those who might attack them also.

Steps To Reduce Security Challenges Faced in Cloud Environments

• Ensure Visibility

Make sure about the visibility into workloads running in multi-cloud vendors.

• Use Automation

Automate the process of management and security events with the help of Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR) tools.

• Make The Vendors Understand The Security Measures

Ensure that the cloud and infrastructure vendors understand the scope of security measures and requirements.

• Fully Compliant Security Tools

Make sure that the cloud and infrastructure vendor security tools deployed are fully compliant with regulatory standards like HIPAA, PCI DSS, FISMA, and SOX.

• Understand The Security Model

Make sure that the partners of the business and other business associates understand the shared security model and how it is applied to multi-cloud environments.

• Develop Proper Policies

One must build cloud usage and permission policies according to the company as well as require multi-factor authentication.

• Outsource Breach Detection

Outsource breach detection by With the help of a cloud access security broker (CASB) outsource breach detection and analyze outbound activities as well as implement data loss prevention (DLP).

Wrapping Up

It is not correct to say that the cloud is not secure or less secure as compared to the traditional IT infrastructure. In reality, a well-run, enterprise-class cloud platform could easily be more resilient, robust, and secure than the less well-run networks of the smaller businesses that use it as a platform.

However, you can take the steps mentioned above to mitigate security challenges faced in Cloud Environments.

 

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You can also write a mail to us at [email protected] or call us on +1 (925) 918-6618.

 

About Sennovate

Sennovate delivers custom identity and access management solutions to businesses around the world. With global partners and a library of 2000+ integrations,10M+ identities managed, we implement world-class cybersecurity solutions that save your company time and money. We offer a seamless experience with integration across all cloud applications, and a single price for product, implementation, and support. Have questions? The consultation is always free. Email [email protected] or call us at: +1 (925) 918-6618.