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6 Hidden Threats in Corporate Email

By January 19, 2025No Comments

Original Article by Paolo Frizzi
Image and Source: https://www.libraesva.com/blog-6-hidden-threats-in-corporate-email/

The best place to hide a book is in a library. The most ideal place to hide a leaf is in the forest. And the best way to hide a suspicious email? In plain sight. Email security fraud is now so common that most internet users are now aware of basic hacker tricks, such as frequent misspellings and suspicious links. Yet even so,  phishing emails are a top point of entry for ransomware, making up 54 percent of digital vulnerabilities.  

 But what about the email security threats that aren’t as common? These types of threats can be even more successful because they aren’t as well known.  

  1. Unintentional acts by authorized users, such as accidental email sharing of sensitive information, pose significant risks to organizations. Training users on appropriate information sharing channels, like email, is crucial to mitigate these risks and protect brand reputation.
  2. Improper Management Controls – Properly defined management security controls are crucial for any organization. These controls include company-wide security policies, change control, configuration management, scheduled risk assessments, contingency planning, and recurring employee training. Without these safeguards, employees are vulnerable to social engineering attacks like phishing, whaling, and ransomware.
  3. Ransomware – Ransomware emails contain or point to malware, designed to encrypt files and documents. Once encrypted, ransomware attackers demand payment for recovery. Though less common than other social engineering attacks, it can have severe consequences. Never pay for ransomware; instead, collaborate with law enforcement and cybersecurity experts.
  4. Authentication Attacks – Hackers sometimes target email servers directly during authentication attacks. They aim to break authentication and access email messages and attachments. They can then misuse this information. Ensure your authentication methods are robust.
  5. Whaling – a type of social engineering, targets high-level executives in corporate organizations. Unlike phishing, which targets unsuspecting victims, scammers who “whale” set their sights higher and use publicly available information like social media profiles to build credibility. See our recent blog for more details on combating this threat.
  6. DDOS and Bot Attacks – Email security faces threats from malicious bot and DDoS attacks. Hackers use hijacked botnets to overwhelm email servers, crashing them due to system overload. Web servers are typically attacked by B2C organizations generating eCommerce sales, while email servers are attacked for sensitive corporate information. Spam filtering becomes crucial in this context.
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