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2015 predicted for more targeted attacks

NFC manipulation and unique cybercrime attacks against financial institutions to emerge, as Trend Micro warns

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Pratima Harigunani
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NEW DELHI, INDIA: Get fore-warned and fore-armed as targeted attacks campaigns may continue to multiply in 2015, after cybercriminals had noteworthy breaches via targeted attacks in the U.S. and China.

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Trend Micro’s threat defense experts predict hackers within countries such as Vietnam, UK, and India, will pursue the use of targeted attacks and we will see attacks against non-traditional countries like we’ve seen recently against Malaysia and Indonesia based organizations.

As per Trend Micro Incorporated's annual security predictions report, “Trend Micro Security Predictions for 2015 and Beyond: The Invisible Becomes Visible”; the company’s threat defense experts are highlighting the report’s forecast that targeted attacks will become rampant from more countries as hackers from the usual suspects have found success targeting victims around the world. Additionally, the report breaks downs seven other cybersecurity threat predictions for 2015 including banks and payment systems.

“What we are seeing today is not a huge surprise but rather the velocity and brutal measures cybercriminals are using to steal information,” said, Dhanya Thakkar, Managing Director, India & SEA, Trend Micro. “Following the success of targeted attacks from Chinese and Russian cybercriminals, many hackers from other countries will regard cyber-attacks as a more practical method to grab a foothold in an organization. Additionally, with the incessant barrage of data breaches emerging almost daily, it’s reasonable to presume that data breaches will be essentially regarded as a common offshoot of the present threat landscape.”

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Threats around banking will continue to become more severe as more unique cybercrime attacks against financial institutions also emerge and financial and banking intuitions must implement two-factor authentication for online services.

“The payment ecosystem will continue to evolve,” said JD Sherry, vice president of technology and solutions, Trend Micro. “Massive transformation is upon us and we will continue to see threat actors trying to manipulate Near Field Communications (NFC) as certain platforms gain momentum due to their significant following and user’s penchant for adopting the latest and greatest technology.”

Some more 2015 predications that the report cautions towards are those of more cybercriminals turning to darknets and exclusive-access forums to share and sell crimeware; increased cyber activity to translate to better, bigger, and more successful hacking tools and attempts; exploits kits targeting Android, as mobile vulnerabilities play a bigger role in device infection.

“Smart homes and home automation will continue to proliferate across the globe, further increasing all of our attack surfaces,” said Sherry. “As such, smart device manufactures must consider how to secure the data that resides in these devices not just the devices themselves.”