Risk Alert: New Cyber-attack Targeting Businesses

The newest cyber-attack being targeted at businesses¹ includes overwhelming individuals’ inboxes then posing as IT to help remedy the very attack they orchestrated.

Keep your employees abreast with the latest cyber threats that they need to be vigilant for with our guide below.

What does this new cyber-attack consist of?

The first phase of this cyber-attack features a sudden flood of emails that appear as though they are from a legitimate source as first. Perhaps a newsletter, subscription service or other similar email. The quantity of emails received could cause your email system to overload.

The second phase will commence quickly following the email onslaught. You will receive a phone call, or Team’s call, from your IT department – or so they would have you believe. They will offer a solution to the issue you are facing and send you a link to click to take you to a website to download some new software. You must not do this under any circumstances.

You should hang up the call immediately and contact your cyber security team to inform them of the attempted breach.

What if I’ve already fallen victim to this cyber-attack and downloaded the system?

If it’s too late and you’ve already experienced this, contact your IT department immediately and inform them of everything that happened.

Commercial Cyber Insurances from Towergate

If you would like to discuss options for Personal and Commercial Cyber Insurances available, please speak to your usual local Towergate representative.

Consistent with our policy when giving comment and advice on a non-specific basis, we cannot assume legal responsibility for the accuracy of any particular statement. In the case of specific problems, we recommend that professional advice be sought.

Sources:

1. The Cost of Business Cyber Crime in 2023
2. UK Cyber Crime Statistics 2024
3. UK Cyber Crime Statistics 2024

About the author

Alison Wild BCom (Hons), FMAAT, MATT, Taxation Technician is a highly respected industry professional who has been working with and advising SMEs in areas including tax, pensions, insurance and marketing for over 25 years. She is a member of the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) and Association of Tax Technicians (ATT) and also has 20 years' experience as a residential landlord.

The information contained in this article is based on sources that we believe are reliable and should be understood as general information only. It is not intended to be taken as advice with respect to any specific or individual situation and cannot be relied upon as such.