Photo by Leidos .
where cyber threat actors have taken power grids offline and shut down energy pipelines , causing disruptions to our normal way of life , according to cyber experts from the WVNG .
“ The cyber domain actions can have an almost immediate and detrimental impact on our physical way of life ,” says Major William Keber , former battalion commander for the Critical Infrastructure Protection ( CIP ) Battalion of the
WVNG . “ Cyber threat actors continue to probe our nation ’ s critical infrastructure defenses . They only have to be right once to put the public ’ s safety at risk .”
Another worrisome factor that has come into play is remote work . For businesses , the changing work environment since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic , with more workers accessing and inputting information from remote
locations , has increased risks for many organizations .
“ I think network security is likely the greatest risk since each home can have a different network — internet service providers , firewalls — through which employees access the corporate data and information resources and interact with co-workers , customers and vendors ,” Desai says . “ Companies are not thinking about the vulnerabilities posed by such disparate accesses . A determined player can exploit this vulnerability to gain access to your business ’ s competitive information and intellectual property .”
Human error is always the biggest risk , according to Keber .
“ Whether that is an unwitting employee clicking on a malicious link or attachment or the human being susceptible to social engineering schemes , the human will continue to be the focus area for adversaries ,” Keber says . “ Since COVID , adversaries have shifted focus to remote work capabilities such as virtual private networks , or VPNs . This trend is expected to continue as people continue to telework .”
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WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE