A Rise in Cyberattacks and the Need for Digital Identity Verification

Enterprises are vulnerable to advanced cyber-attacks and they need to adopt stronger digital verification methods to protect consumer data.

The Covid-19 pandemic brought in major changes and workspace shift was a major change among them. Digital transformation across enterprises enabled them to provide remote working facilities to their employees. The online working environment and WFH culture are here to stay at least for another year or two until we break free from the pandemic. Although it is convenient and cost-effective, this scenario has its share of flaws, among which vulnerability of cyberattacks takes the first spot. Since everything is digital, it is easier for bad actors to manipulate systems as well as humans into believing wrong identities.

Fraudsters have been targeting enterprises for identity thefts, account takeover attacks, data breaches, and more. Companies must understand the looming threat and act on it.

Why Should Enterprises be on Alert?

According to TransUnion's US Financial Hardship Report, digital fraud related to Covid-19 was at 31% last year, with phishing being the most commonly reported crime at 28%.

This is just a small patch from the huge cyber breach array that has been looting enterprises and taking advantage of their digital vulnerability. Enterprises should ask themselves if they know their customers. In the digital world, it is easier to flash fake identities since there is no physical presence and you can't check if it is the same person. Fintech organizations should be more careful while new account openings and transactions using digital interfaces.

Credential stuffing attacks are another significant threat that needs to be addressed. The Sun US reported the 2020 massive credential attack wherein more than 500,000 zoom accounts were on sale on dark webs and hacker forums for less than a penny. Several reports say that credential stuffing or account takeover attacks are on a rise since the pandemic. These attacks enable unauthorized access to user accounts which might lead to data breaches and ransomware attacks. Automated tools and botnets play a crucial role in credential stuffing attacks to gain user authentication across multiple platforms. Yes, AI is both a blessing and a curse sometimes.

Hackers using AI to carry out advanced cyber-attacks are not new. Attackers can manipulate AI algorithms and data sets to get the desired result. AI can be used to access data, identify vulnerabilities, and technically improve the usual attacking strategies. Cyber attackers can weaponize AI to mask identities and persuade authorities to provide sensitive data.

Stronger Identity Verification

According to Research and Markets study, "The Global Post-COVID-19 Identity Verification Market Size is forecast to grow from USD 7.6 Billion in 2020 to USD 15.8 Billion by 2025, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 15.6% during 2020-2025."

Enterprises should adopt different methods for better identity verification and security to deal with rising cyberattacks. Companies can establish minimum Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering requirements to fight financial breaches.

There should be more data privacy regulations like California's Privacy Rights and Enforcement Act 2020 that can protect data and take action against cybercriminals. Enterprises should leverage AI and machine learning to continuously monitor networks and systems to detect threats and prevent them on time. Securing data with multi-factor authentication and advanced biometrics can help make it difficult to crack for hackers. One of the reports by The Verge covers Facebook's initiative to verify the identities of viral accounts to ensure security.

Many enterprises are embracing digital identity verification strategies to ensure maximum security from soaring cybercrimes and data breaches. The remote working phase is going to last for some time and digitally empowering your organization is the only way to defeat digitally empowered cyber attackers.