With all the recent hacking scares all over the world, you know and understand that your cyber security and your business’s cyber security are extremely important. However, when it comes to authentication processes, you may not be sure what the real deal is.

By: Mark Richmond, President/CEO of Micro Doctor IT

Ransomware is a virus that encrypts the files on a computer and any network shared drives attached to that PC. Businesses are being hit with ransomware at an alarming pace. Once those files are encrypted there are 2 options: pay the ransom (averaging $1500.00 in Bitcoins) or restore from an unaffected backup.

For as long as there have been cybercriminals, there have been social engineers, or people who use tricks and scams to force other people to volunteer sensitive information. There are several ways to use social engineering to acquire valuable information like account passwords and bank accounts, but avoiding these scams comes down to one thing: training.

Everyone, from doctors to lawyers, needs to continue learning to stay ahead of the times. Business owners might have it worst of all, oftentimes needing to stay on top of several industries to keep their company running. Keep reading for a refresher on all the latest trends and buzzwords used in the cybersecurity sector.

The next time you visit Dropbox.com, you may be asked to create a new password. Why? Back in 2012 the cloud storage firm was hacked, and while it thought only email addresses had been stolen, new evidence has come to light that user passwords were compromised, too.

According to several reports, the volume of malicious cyber attacks have increased since the beginning of the Rio Olympics. And even though our devices have the latest network security systems, hackers have a cunning trick up their sleeves -- social engineering.

Similar to the shakedowns you see in mob movies where innocent shop owners are forced to pay “protection money,” deploying ransomware is a means of extortion. Computer hackers install it on your network to seize control of your company’s precious confidential data, then demand payment for its safe return.

Let’s face it, keeping yourself free from online threats can be a pain: using different passwords for every site, changing them every three months, using advanced encryption, the list goes on and on. You either end up paranoid of being online or give up altogether.

WordPress is an amazing open source platform that is favored by individuals and business users worldwide due to its ease of use, simplicity and flexibility. However, given that it is the most widely used content management system, it is also the most vulnerable platform out there.

Good cyber security, much like the best NBA defenses, must be strong and able to stop threats from every which way. For the Milwaukee Bucks, their on-court and cyber security defense could both use a little practice. Yahoo! Sports reported that the Milwaukee Bucks sent out the names, addresses, Social Security numbers, compensation information and dates of birth of players as part of a spoofed email attack.