The dark web is an emerging threat to the cybersecurity of businesses around the world. It is a vast marketplace of data that hackers use to exploit weaknesses in business’ networks. Hackers buy and sell data that was collected via phishing, virus attacks and other illicit means. Many breaches go undetected for months while hackers trade the stolen data. It is not unusual for several different parties to buy the same compromised data. Potentially, multiple criminals can attack a company simultaneously.
For example, imagine an employee who falls for a phishing scheme. They click on a link they think is legitimate and enter their login information and password. Cybercriminals now have a doorway into your business. The login and password gives them access and clues to other information. The structure of the login and the structure of the password makes it easier for them to guess other logins and passwords. Users who maintain a single password across multiple sites are especially vulnerable. Hackers may remain quiet for months while they monitor networks for financial, personal and trade secret data.
No defense is perfect and every company is vulnerable to dark web hackers in some way. If a breach happens in secret it can bode trouble. Fortunately, hijacked data can be detected with a dark web scan. Dark web monitoring (scanning) is a secondary line of defense to a company’s usual firewalls and passwords. Detecting compromised data when it goes up for sale offers an advantage for precautioning against attacks. Having data stolen is far from ideal, but actively monitoring the dark web can mitigate the consequences. A prompt counter stops subsequent attacks from other hackers and helps management quickly determine a course of action.
If you would like to learn more about the dark web or dark web monitoring, check our ebook, "The Quick Start Guide to Dark Web Security."