With the ever-evolving landscape of digital threats and cyberattacks, the year 2024 demands a renewed commitment to cybersecurity. As technology advances, so do the tactics employed by malicious actors seeking to exploit vulnerabilities in our digital infrastructure.
According to Indusface’s Q3 Report, over 1.6 billion cyberattacks were blocked from India, indicating a 70% increase compared to Q2, 2023. This increase highlights the growing threat posed by cybercriminals, making it imperative for individuals, businesses, and organizations to proactively fortify their digital defenses to thwart these evolving threats.
In light of these challenges, cybersecurity experts emphasize the need to adopt specific resolutions to strengthen digital defenses in 2024. These resolutions are designed to protect public-facing assets and APIs, enhance vulnerability scans and penetration testing, deploy Web Application and API Protection (WAAP) in block mode, enable origin server protection, apply zero-day patches and autonomous patches on WAAP, and adopt AI to counter bot attacks.
The first resolution recommends maintaining an inventory of public-facing assets and APIs. This involves understanding which assets are exposed to the public and regularly updating and reviewing this inventory to stay ahead of potential threats and streamline cybersecurity efforts.
The second resolution emphasizes the importance of regular vulnerability scans and penetration testing to identify and fortify against misconfigurations, access vulnerabilities, session management weaknesses, input validation flaws, error handling issues, and encryption loopholes. This comprehensive approach ensures a proactive stance against potential cyber threats.
The third resolution highlights the need to deploy Web Application and API Protection (WAAP) in block mode to proactively prevent malicious traffic from reaching the application. By doing so, organizations can significantly reduce the risk of successful cyber-attacks and minimize potential damage.
The fourth resolution urges organizations to enable origin server protection by not exposing origin servers to the internet and deploying an edge security solution like WAAP. Whitelisting only a set of trusted IPs on the origin server ensures that only trusted users can access the server directly.
The fifth resolution emphasizes the importance of applying zero-day patches and autonomous patches on WAAP to mitigate the risk of exploitation from zero-day attacks. Virtual patching acts as a temporary fix, ensuring the security of applications while organizations work on a permanent solution.
The final resolution advocates the adoption of AI to counter bot attacks that have seen a high double-digit growth each quarter. With widespread adoption of LLMs, deploying AI models to quickly alert the SOC/managed services teams becomes crucial in mitigating these attacks effectively.
In conclusion, the responsibility lies with individuals, businesses, and organizations to bolster their digital defenses against an ever-evolving array of cyber threats. Through the adoption of comprehensive, updated inventories, regular vulnerability assessments, deployment of AI-based protection measures, and a proactive approach to patching, a resilient digital ecosystem can be collaboratively constructed. This will safeguard valuable assets amidst the dynamic landscape of cyber threats and pave the way for a more secure and interconnected future.
Recognizing the importance of foresight in cybersecurity, the commitment to strengthening digital defenses in 2024 is crucial for building a more secure digital environment.
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