Understanding of Cyber-Attack Vulnerabilities During Natural Disasters and Discussing A Cyber-Attack Resiliency Framework
Suryadip Chakraborty, Elton M. Mombeshora, Kyra Clark, Tanaka S. Mbavarira · 2024
In the current world of technology, cyber security is increasingly becoming an important pillar of security. However, due to the increase in cybercriminals securing information has become increasingly difficult. Cybercriminals have become more sophisticated in their ways of breaching security measures. It has exposed numerous vulnerabilities that individuals, companies, and governments have. The threat of cyber-attacks exponentially increases during natural disasters. Cyber-attacks have been rated the fifth top-rated risk in 2020 and become the new norm across public and private sectors. This risky industry continues to grow in 2022 as the Internet of Things cyber-attacks alone are expected to double by 2025. Cybercrime, which includes everything from theft or embezzlement to data hacking and destruction, is up 600% as a result from 2019 to 2021. Cyber-attacks on all businesses, but particularly small to medium-sized businesses, are becoming more frequent, targeted, and complex. According to Accenture's Cost of Cybercrime Study, 43% of cyber-attacks are aimed at small businesses, but only 14%are prepared to defend themselves. Not only does a cyber-attack disrupt normal operations, but it may cause damage to important assets and infrastructure that can be impossible to recover from without the budget or resources to do so. Cyber-attacks can impact an organization in many ways - from minor disruptions in operations to major financial losses. Regardless of the type of cyber-attack, every consequence has some form of cost, whether monetary or otherwise. And with the delicate nature of cyber-attacks. A cyberattack is a malicious and deliberate attempt by an individual or organization to breach the information system of another individual or organization. Usually, the attacker seeks some type of benefit from disrupting the victim's network. Cyber-attacks have become increasingly common in recent years. Cyber-attacks that coincide with natural disasters make it increasingly difficult to respond to and recover from natural disasters. These attacks can shut down nuclear centrifuges, air defense systems, and electrical grids, cyber-attacks pose a serious threat to national security. As a result, there is a loss of money and life. This paper mainly focuses on assessing the cyber security vulnerabilities during natural disasters and presenting strategies to prevent, and or mitigate cyber-attacks. We looked at various case studies of cyber-attacks that occurred during natural disasters. With the rapid adoption of technology, cyber-attacks are becoming more prominent due to the financial gain by cybercriminals. Similarly, there has been an increase in natural disasters due to climate change. Cybercriminals now launch their attacks during natural disasters because defense systems are vulnerable. This paper aims to evaluate the current cyber-attack resiliency frameworks for natural disasters and create a cyber-attack resiliency framework in preparation for future attacks.