The Dark Web. If there is a more obviously sinister sounding term in the IT world, I don’t want to hear it. It’s pretty safe to assume that most people have at least heard of the Dark Web. These deeply hidden corners of the internet are only accessible through special software that mask your IP address. What might surprise you is the fact that the Dark Web contains highly illegal services, advertised openly. If someone was looking to purchase stolen credit card information, the Dark Web is the place to go. In fact, these stolen cards might be advertised on the front page on many sites. Privacy, anonymity, and masking are the name of the game when it comes to browsing the Dark Web. Without pesky tracking, malicious actors feel more comfortable utilizing these hidden avenues to distribute their ill-gotten gains.
What Kind of Criminal Activity Occurs on The Dark Web?
The Dark Web is a great source of information and resources for the cybercriminals. It can contain databases of compromised systems (known as botnets) which can be rented out to perform nefarious deeds such as a Denial-of-Service attack. The Dark Web can contain lists of vulnerable or hacked devices that could prove valuable if exploited. Password leaks are extremely common to trade on the Dark Web, helping attackers perform the ever-popular account takeover attacks that are growing in frequency. Whenever you hear about a massive data breach, password compromise, or stolen credit card numbers, you can rest assured that these assets are being listed for sale on the Dark Web.
If The Dark Web is so Hidden, How Can We Detect a Breach?
Here is the secret to the Dark Web that most non-security folk are unaware of – the Dark Web isn’t actually that hidden. All it requires is a simple software to access. What makes the Dark Web tricky is the lack of an easy search engine to utilize. Cybersecurity teams across the nation have developed resources to track activity on the Dark Web and respond to leaks that occur. While this monitoring solution doesn’t help prevent the actual leak – it can be incredibly effective at detecting incidents before they do damage.
Dark Web Breach Assessments
Unfortunately, the odds are overwhelmingly against you when it comes to leaked data on the Dark Web. A mind-boggling number of records are compromised each year, creating cybersecurity risk at no fault of your own. These breaches are often sold on the Dark Web in packages or leaked “for free”. A Dark Web breach assessment is an attempt by the good guys to give a one-time overview of the risks that might be facing an organization by scanning the Dark Web for signs that they may have breached accounts or records. By providing easy-to-ready reporting and an overall risk score, cybersecurity teams can help expose the breaches and recommend actions to help reduce the risk associated with compromised resources.
Assessments Are a Good Start - Where Do We Go From Here?
In the realm of cybersecurity, threats are significantly harder to counter when they fly under the radar. Managed Dark Web Scanning services provide real-time alerting and notifications to organizations when their records are compromised. In most circumstances, this compromise is in the form of accounts having their passwords or credentials leaked to the world. Attackers across the globe then use these credentials to attack an organization's user accounts, attempting to impersonate legitimate employees.
A Dark Web scanning service detects and alerts when these compromises occur, enabling an organization’s security resources to immediately protect the accounts that are affected. Furthermore, these breaches can reveal gaps in the security surrounding your IT resources and accounts. This managed alerting service is highly effective at detecting this rapidly accelerating threat, greatly reducing the chances of an undetected account compromise.
How Does My Organization Obtain Managed Dark Web Scanning?
The Scarlett Group offers services that will proactively monitor the Dark Web for you and notify you immediately when your data is found on the Dark Web. There is minimal effort needed on your behalf to provide you with Dark Web Monitoring. Our team will automatically monitor for your organization’s email domain on the Dark Web. If it’s discovered that credentials have been leaked, our team will immediately notify your organization and work to remediate the associated risk. We both monitor and respond, allowing you to take the next steps to protect your personal and organizational data. Not only does this give you peace of mind, but also takes the burden off you to routinely check for compromised data on the Dark Web.
Let’s Talk Risk
Account takeovers are on the rise – and fast. We have observed a 300% increase in account takeover attacks over the past year, likely due to rapidly changing work circumstances. The harsh truth is that most organizations are at an extremely high risk of their accounts having been compromised through no fault of their own. Our team has the capability to provide a one-time Dark Web assessment to reveal any potential risks that already exist on the Dark Web. If you feel that your organization could benefit from a quick assessment or managed Dark Web scanning services, be sure to contact us. Cybercriminals are winning when it comes to Dark Web leaks – fight back with Dark Web scanning.
