Cyber threats are especially prevalent during the holiday season. Hackers know that most organizations operate on a skeleton crew during this time of the year. A 2021 report noted that major ransomware attacks “tend to occur on weekends and holidays when fewer staff are around to detect and respond to them.”

Ransomware is an almost guaranteed danger that every organization must prepare for. This malicious software, also known as malware, threatens to publish a company’s critical data or block access to it unless a ransom is paid. It typically gains entry through insecure remote access, network vulnerabilities, software downloads or email attachments. With thousands of attacks every day in the U.S., ransomware is not a matter of if but when.

Firewalls are an essential first line of defense in an organization’s network security strategy. But if that’s true, why do so many companies ignore them? To better understand, we talked with C Spire Authority engineer Zach Smith, who specializes in all things firewall. 

The business world is on high alert. President Biden, the FBI and Department of Homeland Security are warning the private sector about potential Russian-sourced cyber attacks. The consistent theme? “Lean into your cybersecurity strategy,” said Conrad Bell, C Spire Chief Information Security Office. “While there might be more threats than usual, malware, phishing attempts, zero-day attacks, etc, are not new. A smart strategy that deploys layers of security is the best approach to today’s threats.”

Next-generation firewalls, also known as second generation firewalls, protect organizations through advanced security features. NGFWs provide functions like deep-packet inspection, intrusion prevention (IPS), advanced malware detection, application control, and overall increased network visibility through inspection of encrypted traffic. They can be found anywhere from an on-premise network edge to its internal boundaries, and can also be employed on a public or private cloud environment.

If you’ve received a message from your boss requesting a gift card, it’s probably a phishing attempt. “We’re seeing a rise in gift card scams,” says Conrad Bell, Chief Information Security Officer at C Spire. “Hackers send people emails or text messages in which they pretend to be a supervisor or a senior executive. They trick employees into buying gift cards and sending them the activation codes.” Once the codes are sent, the money is gone.