Explore how a proactive shift towards preventing cyber attacks can address the escalating trend of cybercrime, with insights into effective strategies and solutions.

July 20, 2022 12:55:36 PM EDT | Addressing the Rise in Cybercrime: A Shift in Strategy Towards Prevention

Explore how a proactive shift towards preventing cyber attacks can address the escalating trend of cybercrime, with insights into effective strategies and solutions.

 The landscape of criminal activity against businesses has seen varying trends over the years, with some areas witnessing significant improvements. A notable example is the decline in bank robberies in the United States, dropping from 7,465 incidents in 2003 to just 1,788 in 2020, as reported by the FBI. This decrease has bolstered confidence and stimulated investment within the sector. However, the realm of cybercrime presents a starkly different picture, with an alarming increase in incidents. In 2020, nearly 800,000 cases of cybercrimes were reported, a substantial rise from less than 300,000 in 2016.
 

This worrying trend in cybercrime has captured the attention of business and government leaders both domestically and internationally. For instance, in 2020, around two-thirds of Canadian companies fell victim to phishing attacks, often the precursor to more sophisticated cyber assaults.

The cybersecurity industry's response to this escalation has been mixed. Some companies have adopted a "shift-right" strategy, essentially resigning to the inevitability of breaches and focusing on detection and response (DR). While this acceptance of reality is understandable, a potentially more optimistic approach emphasizes the prevention of attacks. Termed "shift-left," this strategy concentrates on addressing foundational security flaws within an enterprise's IT infrastructure, advocating for thorough reviews and corrections of IT permissions, entitlements, and other critical data security components.

SPHERE, a cybersecurity firm, exemplifies this proactive stance, offering solutions aimed at tightening account management and bolstering defenses against common points of exploitation. Focusing on prevention holds the most promise for reversing the rising tide of cyber incidents. Although detecting and responding to attacks remains necessary, making it increasingly difficult for adversaries to succeed represents a more sustainable path forward.

Now may be the opportune time for organizations to assess their security posture and rectify any vulnerabilities in their IT configurations and settings. SPHERE stands out as a valuable ally in this crucial endeavor.

Rosario Mastrogiacomo

Written By: Rosario Mastrogiacomo

Rosario Mastrogiacomo is the Vice President of Engineering for SPHERE, where he focuses on solving complex security and infrastructure problems involving the processing and analysis of large data sets to find creative and out-of-box thinking solutions. Rosario has been working as a technology leader for over 25 years at financial organizations such as Neuberger Berman, Lehman Brothers, and Barclays. He has held various senior leadership positions including Global Head of Core Software Engineering, Head of Mac Platform Engineering, Global Head of Windows Engineering, and Windows Support Manager. Rosario has built and managed several teams within these positions, some with multi-million-dollar budgets. For the last eight years at SPHERE, Rosario has built the team and methodologies for the development of SPHEREboard. Rosario holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Baruch College (CUNY).