Russian spies have grabbed the headlines in recent weeks. Eleven have now been captured and are standing trial in New York City. However, another 200 million spies remain at large, and they have managed to infiltrate almost every home and business in America. But these spies are taking much more from us then some political plans. They are taking our identities, our dollars, and our productivity right out from under our noses.
Today cyber-espionage is a threat to every one of us. Spyware programs have been unknowingly installed on 80% of all computers in America. These programs range from benign pop up ads, to software that steals passwords, credit card numbers, and our identities.
These spies are designed to fool us into downloading them, and usually sneak inside our computer systems through simple human error. Sometimes they piggyback on programs we choose to download. Other times they are slipped onto our hard drives simply by visiting the wrong website. We can take precautions to avoid downloading spyware like only opening emails you expect, not downloading free software, and visiting only approved websites. But there’s no way to be connected to the internet and not face spyware threats.
The effects of spyware can be devastating to a business network. The most innocent spyware tries to target us with ads and collects information about our web history. Although this sounds like little more than an invasion of privacy, the data constantly flowing to and from each computer in the network can bring the entire office to a standstill. Often, the symptoms of these programs are misdiagnosed as outdated equipment, leading to pricey network overhauls. For a 50-station network, replacement costs can range up to $100,000, but the worst part is, the problem still won’t be solved. Unless your office is filled with 50 tech experts, spyware viruses will certainly be contracted again and weeks later leave you in the same slow, leaky boat. Left untreated, these “innocent” adware programs have been known to cripple entire networks costing companies millions.
Then there are the malicious spyware viruses that steal passwords, social security numbers, credit card information, and even your private messages. These targeted attacks prey on human errors with misleading e-mails, links to fake anti-virus software, and countless other tricks to infest your hard drive. Most companies are reluctant to admit security breaches, but according to the FBI, 20% of US firms have reported cyber attacks. The average cost of each reported attack is $24,000.
Computer hackers are in the spyware business for one reason— money. The criminal spyware industry is super-profitable and employs some of the brightest computer minds in the world. Even though there’s a constant battle to defeat these new economic and security threats, no anti-spyware program is ever truly up to date. Because of the dynamic nature of these spyware viruses, the only possible way to prevent infection is constant monitoring by a professional network administrator. As our methods of doing business and transferring information evolve, so too does the need for network security. In 1920, our cars didn’t have seatbelts. In 1960, love was free and unprotected. And in 1990, we didn’t worry about computer security. But these days are much more complex, much more sophisticated, and much more dangerous. And that’s why these days we need much more powerful, proactive computer protection. In 1980, Russian spies were our biggest threat. In 2010, it’s the spy you just download that you need to worry about.
