Threat Landscape in Big Game Hunting: Cyberthreats in 2019 and 2020

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Big Game Hunting: Cyberthreats in 2019 and 2020
Fortinet is a cyber security organization with the largest security device footprint in the industry. Annually, the organization publishes results on the status of the global threat landscape. These results are a collective intelligence of FortiGuard Labs, drawn from an extensive network of sensors that collect billions of daily threat events in live production events globally. In its 2020 report, the organization established that, among other major threats, ransomware continued to plague business organizations, especially in the 2nd quarter of 2020. According to Fortinet (12), there was a sevenfold increase in ransomware activity in December compared to July 2020. Attackers have discovered that crypto-locking critical systems can give them higher bargaining power for ransoms in what has come to be known as "Big Game Hunting." The current paper aims to provide an overview of the changes or updates on this threat landscape in later 2019 and early 2020.
Late 2019 and Early 2020
Late 2019 and early 2020 mark a watershed moment in the history of ransomware attacks. It is the period in which the Covid-19 pandemic, lock-downs, and social distancing measures were enforced. According to Fortinet (2020), many adversaries took advantage of the disruptions in the period to ramp up ransomware attacks. Thus, the first fundamental change to this threat landscape was a sudden surge in attacks. In a period of disruption, this surge indicates how the techniques involved can be easily deployed, especially by focusing on employees who have limited digital skills (Connolly and Wall). Thus, as an update to the current Fortinet survey of the cyber threat landscape, an emphasis should be placed on developing digital skills among employees and even potential customers. Some organizations like Amazon have invested in improving the digital skills of customers. Aside from enhancing its market base, the organization is also banking on the investment to reduce potential cyberattacks.
The seco...