Three Trends in Cybersecurity to Watch

At Blue Cross Blue Shield, Wayne Nordstrom performs infrastructure and applications vulnerability scanning. He was previously the senior desktop engineer at Suffolk University in Boston. Wayne Nordstrom has an AS in cybersecurity from Cape Cod Community College and is currently studying for a BS in networks and cybersecurity at the University of Maryland.

As technology continues to evolve, so does the global cyberthreat landscape that businesses must navigate. Here are three areas worth watching in the years ahead.

Attacks on cloud services
Embracing cloud-based computing technology has many benefits, such as increased efficiency and reduced operational costs. If not adequately maintained or configured, cyber attackers can exploit the vulnerabilities and disrupt business.

Artificial (AI) intelligence integration
As the frequency and intensity of cyberattacks grow, AI can help under-resourced or overstretched security teams cope. By helping to analyze massive quantities of data, AI supplies teams with threat intelligence and boosts response times.

More automotive hacking
Modern vehicles are loaded with automated software that aids in engine timing, cruise control, airbags, door lock, and communication technologies. Self-driving autos use even more complex systems. All these are opening the door for more automotive hacking.

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How to Spot a Deepfake

A senior vulnerability risk manager at Blue Cross Blue Shield, Wayne Nordstrom researches cybersecurity trends and emerging technology. Among others, Wayne Nordstrom focuses on coming up with solutions to fight cyber fraud.

One of the latest methods by which scammers and hackers commit cyber fraud is using the technology deepfaking, which can digitally manipulate a person’s appearance and identity. The most famous deepfakes belong to popular personalities, morphing their faces to someone else’s as they make an impression. A more sinister use of the technology has also emerged, with scammers using the algorithmic technology to produce more subtle deepfakes to manipulate victims.

These deepfake scams can take a variety of forms, from blackmail to extortion schemes. However, researchers have found a few ways to spot a deepfake, even with the naked eye. The tell-tale sign, studies show, is the pupils of a deepfaked image. While other features can be approximated by the algorithm, even high-quality deepfakes have trouble maintaining a clear, round shape for a person’s pupils, leading to said pupils having a distorted or ragged edge.

There are some issues with this detection method, not least that some real people have irregular pupils due to genetic factors but also that all the research on the signs of deepfakes is in the public domain. Like the readily available deepfake technology, the manual on how to spot them is in the hands of those who would use it to manipulate others. This has led some researchers to worry that deepfake algorithms could be improved by referencing research on their weaknesses, thus requiring new detection techniques to be discovered.

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How Scammers Are Using Deepfakes to Manipulate Victims

Wayne Nordstrom is a networks and cybersecurity graduate candidate senior vulnerability risk manager. Among other digital tools that hackers and scammers use, Wayne Nordstrom has researched the impact of emerging technologies, such as deepfakes, on scammer tactics.

Deepfakes are a digital imaging technique that allows anyone, not just computer experts, to use an algorithmic program to superimpose one person’s face onto another person’s body. This can be done in post-editing, such as when producing a video, but it can also be done in real-time for situations like video conferences.

Although the concern that deepfakes were going to be used during the 2019 presidential election to manufacture fake, disparaging videos of presidential candidates never materialized, deepfake technology has already made it possible for criminals to create fraudulent blackmailing material.

One story from The Indian Express tells of a man who spoke with a scammer on a video call, only to collect visual data from the live feed to create a deepfaked video. This video appeared to show the man on a live “sex chat” and was henceforth used to blackmail him and sent to his family and friends when he refused to pay. Cybersecurity experts warn that such stories could become more common as the technology becomes more widespread and easier to use.

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Cyberattacks and Cyberthreats Increase during Pandemic

A graduate of Cape Cod Community College, Wayne Nordstrom holds an associate of science in cybersecurity and penetration testing. Wayne Nordstrom works as a senior vulnerability risk manager at Blue Cross Blue Shield, where he helps the insurance provider defend against cyberattacks.

The coronavirus has made many people move from a typical workplace to an online setting, which opened the door to increased cyberattacks. According to the FBI, since the start of the pandemic, the number of cyberattacks has tripled, and Google reported that it has faced over 18 million phishing attempts in that time.

Most of the cyberattacks in 2020 were motivated by financial gain, with nearly 86 percent of the attackers requesting a ransom. The average cost of a ransomware attack in 2018 was only $5,000; in 2020, this number reached $200,000. This has made companies want to hire or contract with cybersecurity professionals to defend against any potential threats, with more than 500,000 open positions in the United States and over 3 million throughout the world.

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