A few weeks ago, hackers successfully broke into Internet infrastructure provider DYN’s servers and launched a massive DDoS attack that knocked a large portion of East Coast websites offline. 

That attack certainly got everyone’s attention.

Now, DDoS — or distributed denial of service — is suddenly a household name, and something that every business leader should be concerned about heading into 2017.

In this type of attack, cybercriminals use massive networks of hacked systems, called botnets, to launch concentrated, targeted attacks against online networks. The goal in a DDoS attack is to overload a target network with traffic until it shuts down.

One study from Kaspersky shows that a single DDoS attack can cost a company more than $1.6 billion in losses. And 8 out of 10 companies will face several attacks in one year.

Up until recently, hackers were primarily using computers and connected devices to launch DDoS attacks. But according to a new report from Microsoft, they have a new weapon of choice: Virtual cloud servers. Hackers are now compromising and using virtual, cloud-based machines to launch large cyberattacks against business networks.

"In the cloud weaponization threat scenario, an attacker establishes a foothold within a cloud infrastructure by compromising and taking control of a few virtual machines," the report explains. "The attacker can then use these virtual machines to attack, compromise, and control thousands of virtual machines—some within the same public cloud service provider as the initial attack, and others inside other public cloud service providers."

So if your business is using virtual machines, it’s more important than ever to protect them. Otherwise, your business could unwillingly be assisting cybercriminals in their efforts to shut down corporate networks. Hackers may be using your infrastructure to carry out their nefarious plans.

A new breed of hacktrepeneurs has awoken and they have little to fear and everything to gain by infecting as many companies as possible and extorting money from them. Apex Technology Services stands ready to protect your company regardless of whether it’s located in New York City; White Plains, New York; Connecticut; Australia; Europe; or anywhere else. Our full suite of cybersecurity and IT support services is at your disposal, enabling you to spend less time worrying about and more time growing your business.

In addition, our new Cybersecurity Compliance Certification for law firms will help keep your legal practice from becoming the next Panama Papers victim. This baseline cybersecurity audit for the legal industry should be considered seriously by all law firms.