Noting a surge of cyber activity before major sporting events, Cytegi, an Israeli cyber security company warned that cyber attacks could become more common in the run-up to the 2016 Olympics in August.
According to Cytegi’s intelligence analysis platform, hackers set up phishing sites and sell counterfeit tickets and travel packages. Hacker activity in the political scene is also more common, with government sites being attacked to call attention to their causes.
Most attacks are expected to target the financial and banking sectors, retail companies, and government agencies.
“Government institutions and banks must be prepared for possible attacks and increase awareness and training of their employees who have access to the most valuable information,” said Dan Pastor, head of intelligence at Cytegic. “They must make sure they implement security controls on their networks, web applications and infrastructure.”
The mode of attacks could be denial of service, defacement, ransomware — when malicious software is installed in a device without the user being aware — and social engineering, when people are manipulated into taking actions or revealing confidential knowledge, he said.
During the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, there were almost 90,000 cyber attacks in the country within a 30-day period leading to the first day of the tournament.
The public and private sectors are advised to fortify their anti-phishing and social engineering training and awareness among their personnel. Strong web firewalls and automated cyber risk assessments will also increase resilience.
Cytegic developed software that can gather, process and analyze thousands of intelligence feeds from multiple sources. It provides “a quick and clear analysis of cyber-trends and patterns” and can forecast possible future threats, Pastor said.
The firm was founded in 2012 and caters to banks, healthcare centers, airlines and governments in the US and Europe. Carmi Gillon, the company’s chairman, is a former chief of Israel’s Shin Bet internal security service.
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