By 2005, 90% of cyber attacks will exploit known security flaws for which a patch is available or a solution known, according to GartnerG2.
Gartner analysts claim that not only are there patches available before the cyber attacks, but 90% are imitation attacks. Also, recent cyber attacks could have been avoided if enterprises were more focused on their security efforts.
“Nearly every major attack to hit the headlines involved the exploitation of known security flaws for which a patch or defence was widely known,” said Richard Mogull, research director at GartnerG2. “Estimated losses from Code Red and Nimda were in the billions of dollars, yet Code Red exploited a flaw for which a patch was available, proving that we never learn from our mistakes. Nimda exploited the same flaw just a few months later. Both continue to survive on the Internet today.”
In 2005, Gartner forecasts that 20% of enterprises will experience a serious (beyond virus) internet security incident. Of those that do, the cleanup costs of the incident will exceed the prevention costs by 50%
. “A proactive security posture doesn’t mean you attack hackers before they attack you, it means you have a well-developed response plan and keep looking for the early indications of an attack,” Mogull said.
“Increase the enterprise’s overall security posture. Develop an internal response plan and aggressively monitor internet activity on all systems, especially firewall and intrusion detection logs,” Mogull added. “Evaluate established security plans in light of recent events, and update as needed. If no CIRT exists, consider forming one or contracting with an external provider to evaluate systems.”
