Avoid Data Breach

While businesses are increasingly aware of the many dangers that cyber-attacks can present to their company, it seems that they still aren’t entirely sure how to deal with data loss or breaches. The majority of modern businesses workings are dealt with online, and if a malware attack or other bugs enter their network, they can be left completely crippled.

You can minimize the risk of a data breach and ensure your company is well equipped to deal with the fallout by follow a few simple steps:

  1. Understand the Threats – Be proactive and make sure that you and your employees understand the risks they face. Identifying the most sensitive and important data in your network so that you can devise a plan to back it up before an attack occurs.
  2. Protect Yourself – Making sure that adequate security measures are in place in case of an attack is crucial.
  3. Keep Updated – Meet regularly with your board of directors, your company’s CEO, and your I.T. security team to keep everyone updated on potential security and online threats. This is a good way to ensure that everyone is on the same page and that all parties are prepared for a potential breach.
  4. Test Yourself – The best way to determine how ready you are for an attack is a drill.
  5. Train Your Staff – Reduce employee mistakes and negligence in the handling of sensitive information with regular training and awareness programs. This can help to prevent any careless errors such as opening an e-mail containing data-destroying malware.
  6. Security Team – Select a security leader and apoint an expert staff to be ready todeal with incident response. Should your company fall victim to an online threat, having a unified team to deal with the issue will ensure a quick response.

Extraditing Hackers

A Czech court ruling on a case involving the hacking of computers belonging to US companies states the alleged hacker can be extradited to Russia or USA.

The hacker, Yevgeniy Nikulin, was arrested by Czech police with the help of the FBI after Interpol issued the international warrant. Yevgeniy is sought after by the US because of his involvement in hacking Linkedin and Dropbox, among other companies. Russian had also been after him for a separate charge of Internet theft in 2009. Because of this, the Russians have been trying to prevent his extradition to the US and have him sent to Russia.

With the new ruling, both extradition request have been validated and currently Nikulin has only appealed his extradition to the United States. He has three days to decide if he will agree to being extradited to Russia.

This story could take a step deeper, if a statement of the accused is true.

The defense lawyers have rejected the US charges, stating the US has been looking to turn him into a political pawn; urging him to falsely testify that he cooperated in the hacking attack on the Democratic National Committee ordered by Russian authorities and in exchange, he would receive money and a life in the United States.

This is part of the US ongoing investigation and accusation of alleged Russian involvement in their presidential elections. An accusation Russia has vigorously denied that.