Case Study: Mobile Device Security and Other Threats

An analysis of the emerging security threats presented within the “Security Threat Report 2014” report shows in the past several years the IT community has seen a growth in the use of mobile technology in everyday interaction. The growth of mobile technology has had some positive impacts. Unfortunately with all good/positive change we are also plagued with some negative as well. For the purpose of this case study I will address a few of the big concerns to security and mobile threats. There is an estimated 6 billion users with mobile subscriptions today. Mobile devices are rapidly replacing the personal computer at home and in the workplace. The new uses of smartphones and tablets range from Internet-related surfing to ecommerce transactions for online banking. Users are even accessing corporate data on their personal mobile devices. These usages create management and security challenges for a corporation.

Our increased dependence on mobile devices has opened a developing threat to exploitation by cybercriminals. Attackers will use malicious mobile apps to send text messages from mobile phone numbers and rack up unauthorized charges. This new breed of attackers has found targets that include millions of computers belonging to the government as well as private industry. They have even included our individual personal computers. Our attention must now include the prevention to new-enthused hackers from targeting our systems, stealing our data or harming our critical infrastructure.

Cybercriminals have started to leverage online marketing as a way to promote and sell their services on the black market. In 2012, the Blackhole exploit kit broke new ground. Borrowing code from the blackhole, a number of new exploit kits hit the market. The resulting botnets are responsible for an increase in ransomware attacks. A large amount of security research¬ers are looking to prevent these types of attacks. Our academia, private agencies and govern¬ment must all work...