With 2024 ending, lets look back at the most used attacks both in the United States and the rest of the world.

The list below is what research for 2024 shows as the most common types of Cyber Attacks.

• Phishing: This is a Social Engineering cyber attack which targets people based a number of variables. A good example is sending you a an email that has a fake banking site attached, with this fake site they are hoping you try to login which would give them your banking login. A Phishing attack can occur through text message, email, chat, and through voice calls. Each is an attempt to gain some type of information from you. Your best defense against phishing attacks is to be vigilant in being aware of what you click on. Some phishing attacks have become advanced and require you to only click a link or go to a specific website.

• Malware: This is a term for malicious software that generally intends to do harm to the system it is on. There are many types of malware out there from Viruses and Worms to Ransomware. Lets start with Ransomware, this is where a system or computer is encrypted and held for ransom by the attacker typically asking for payment in the form of some form of crypto currency. They use Crypto Currency in an effort to try and avoid being caught by authorities. The other two mentioned which are viruses and worms differ in how they operate. A virus typically stays on one system and requires some form of interaction to spread itself across other systems while a worm can propagate itself without any further actions. They usually get onto a system through a combination of installing infected software and running of said software. This could be as simple as downloading a video game for free which is packaged with the malware.

• Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks: A Denial of Service is in the name, an attacker is attempting to deny service. The services denied can be as simple as one service on a computer to an entire website. The reasoning for why you may do this can range from stopping certain security platforms from operating to taking a website offline. These attacks can help attackers find another exploit in the systems they are targeting. One example is taking the security of a machine offline through the use of the Denial of it service.

• Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) attacks: This is a more advanced type of attack where an attacker manages to place themself in the middle of two communications such as two computers or even an application and the application server. These are some recommended ways of mitigating Man in the Middle attacks: One is to use strong passwords, by having a strong password you make it harder for the attacker to quickly get the information to start the attack. Second You should use 2-Factor authentication as this would make it so that the attacker would need the verification from 2-Factor to continue.

• Telecommunications Breaches: This is one attack that deals with Telecommunication business entities and government entities. Attackers go after these entities for the customer data that is associated with them. To them this data is very valuable, and this can be a serious issue. The best thing you can do is pick the telecommunication company which has had the least amount of successful attacks against it. This does not ensure that your data is safe as even the most secure company can be attacked.

There are other attacks, but these were the most common in 2024. Now with 2025 underway it would be best to look into improving your overall security. If you need help with this Cenegi can help. Reach out to Cenegi to see what we would recommend.