Attack Vector

Cyberattacks have different motivations, including money, political statements, leaking secrets or confidential information, stealing personal and financial data, and provoking unplanned service outages.

Attack prevention may require IT providers to implement JavaScrip in-app protection.

How are Attack Vectors and Attack Surfaces Related?

Cyberattack vectors and attack surfaces are related, as an attack surface is the blend of all attack vectors available to an attacker. In other words, it is the sum of points on a network where attacks can occur.

A company must eliminate attack vectors wherever possible to reduce its attack surface.

Also, it is advisable to have a gatekeeper, which will be placed in strategic places to reduce attack vector risks. In our case, gatekeeper refers to security products and procedures.

Attack vectors have the potential to affect various industries due to the potential value of the data they possess or the critical services they provide. Here are some prime targets:

1. Financial services and Banking: Attacks in the finance and banking industries can lead to financial fraud, identity theft, and unauthorized access to funds.
   
   

2. Healthcare: The growth of digital healthcare creates new challenges in patient-sensitive data management, as breaches can compromise patient privacy, result in medical identity theft, and disrupt critical healthcare services.
   
   

3. E-commerce and retail: This is one of the most-wanted industries for attack vectors. On average, it takes 212 days to detect and contain a data breach. Not protecting e-commerce applications has several risks, with an emphasis on Magecart attacks, sensitive data leakage, and revenue losses.
   
   

4. IT and Software Development: Targeting technology companies may have the purpose of gaining access to source code and intellectual property or launching supply chain attacks.

Several common attack vectors in cyber security compromise systems, networks, and data. The attack vectors have two clusters: passive attack vector exploits (e.g., phishing) and active attack vector exploits (e.g., malware). Here are some examples:

1. Malware: Malicious software is a prevalent attack vector. It includes viruses, trojans, spyware, ransomware, and others. Malware can perform unauthorized activities, such as data theft and unauthorized access.
   
   

2. Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) attacks involve intercepting and manipulating communication between two parties without their knowledge. Different from Man-in-The-Browser (MiTB) attacks.
   
   

3. Phishing Attacks: Attackers trick users into revealing sensitive information, such as passwords and financial details, by impersonating a legitimate entity.
   
   

4. Cross-Site Scripting (XSS): Attackers inject malicious scripts into websites or web applications. The user’s browsers will then execute these malicious scripts.
   
   

5. Supply Chain Attacks: Exploit vulnerabilities in third-party software, hardware, or services that are part of the IT infrastructure. Supply chain attacks compromise the supply chain by injecting malware, backdoors, or other malicious components that can gain unauthorized access to or control over the infrastructure.
   
   

6. Browser-based attacks: Attackers manipulate websites by injecting malicious code or redirecting users to fraudulent websites, deceiving web browsers into executing code that initiates the download of malware or compromises the security of user devices.
   
   

7. Application compromise: Infect a trusted third-party application with malware.