Preventing Malware Attacks 

Malware attacks threaten the peace of mind of executives and board members in companies across the world. They can cause extreme damage throughout computer systems, steal valuable information and compromise network integrity. Understanding these threats, how they manifest, and how you can prevent them is critical to safeguarding your system.

What Is a Malware Attack?

Malware is a prevalent type cyberattack that steals information, damages computers, disrupts network operations, and more. It’s short for malicious software, which is an umbrella term for viruses, worms, Trojan horses, spyware, adware and ransomware. Hackers often send fraudulent emails, create fake duplicate websites, or directly infiltrate computer systems to collect sensitive data, such as Social Security numbers, credit card information and login details. Certain malware types can also remotely control devices, delete files and destroy operating systems.

How to Identify Malware Attacks

Malware comes in many forms, often making it challenging to identify malware on a computer or other device. Hackers usually distribute this dangerous software through the methods mentioned above, but they can also embed viruses into images and documents. Once the malicious software is installed on a machine within a network, some may takes advantage of security vulnerabilities to move laterally throughout the network to maximize its reach.

In an active malware attack, your organization may experience:

• Ransom demands
• Suspicious emails
• Random pop-ups and ads
• Slow computers with repetitive crashes
• Disabled system tools
• Strange outgoing emails
• Locked network areas

How to Prevent Malware Attacks

Infected attachments, advertisements, programs and websites all threaten your system’s integrity. These malicious attacks constantly evolve, with bad actors looking for unforeseen ways to penetrate your network.

A strong prevention strategy is essential to protect your computer from malware attacks. It’s vital to forge a plan with numerous collaborative elements. The nuts and bolts of a strong prevention plan consist of strong passwords, multifactor authentication, strong endpoint management, and the latest cybersecurity software. However, mitigating risk from malware doesn’t stop at prevention, you need to be prepared to respond and mitigate any attacks that get through your defense. Additional actions you can take include:

• Educating your employees,
• Strengthening firewall and IDS/IPS rules,
• Backing up all mission-critical data regularly,
• Testing backup restoration procedures,
• Utilizing network segmentation, and
• Monitoring cybersecurity performance metrics.

About Our Cybersecurity Management

Organizations often need to evaluate the steps they are taking to mitigate cyberattacks rather than the effectiveness of those steps. Introducing the award-winning Cybersecurity Performance Management (CPM™) platform from TDI — CnSight®. This plug-and-play solution seamlessly integrates into your systems to provide industry-specific, executive-level insight while increasing visibility across your entire security strategy.

Our innovative platform automates the reporting process and compares your performance against known Cyber Performance Indicators. With meaningful metrics and freed-up time, your staff can focus on increasing your cybersecurity maturity, reducing risk, preventing ransomware, improving return on investment (ROI), and much more. We leverage our decades of experience with this technology to offer a Managed Cybersecurity Performance (MCP) solution that drives your business forward.

Get Started With TDI Today!

TDI has the only solution for malware attacks you’ll ever need. We’ll help you discover areas of improvement regardless of your budget or size. Contact us online or give us a call at 202-335-0053 to speak with a team member and learn more about the CnSight® MCP platform.