In an attempt to capture sensitive data such as personally identifiable information, passwords, and more worryingly, your bank and credit card details, Phishing is now the most popular form of cybercrime and one we all need to be aware of.

We reveal everything you need to know about the much-talked-about and increasing form of cyberattack, and more importantly, how to protect you and your business online.

 


 

What Is Phishing?

Phishing is a form of cyberattack that uses deceptive emails as its weapon of choice.

The purpose of these emails is to mislead and trick the recipient into believing that the message is something they need to take action on – a request from their bank, for instance, or an email from their colleagues or manager, asking them to click on a link or download an attachment.Phishing-Faded

Phishing is popular amongst hackers, quite simply because it works, and that’s down to the ever-changing techniques and convincing emails that nurture and build trust with a recipient.

By coming from what appears to be a real person or a trusted entity, the recipient is more likely to click or download an attachment – and that’s when the clever but nasty stuff happens.

Whilst very common, Phishing isn’t new, in fact, it’s one of the oldest forms of cybercrime – with the first ever lawsuit for Phishing being filed back in 2004, highlighting how hard it can be to deter due to the ever-changing techniques and type of attacks.

 


 

How common is Phishing?

Phishing, malware and ransomware remain the top three weapons of choice for today’s cyber criminals. The Cyber Security Breaches Survey, a research study by GOV.UK. recently found that 72% of large organisations and 36% of small firms have experienced cyberattacks in the UK in early 2023 and 83% of those encountered breaches were identified as phishing attacks.


 

Types of Phishing?

Spear Phishing

Spear Phishing is when a hacker creates a bespoke email targeting a specific individual – like a fisherman aiming for one specific fish, as to just casting a hook with bait on and see who bites.

Hackers do their research, identifying targets on social media, most commonly LinkedIn so they can impersonate their co-workers. As an example, a Spear Phisher might impersonate a manager and target the finance department requesting the payment or bank transfer.

Clone Phishing

Clone phishing is a type of phishing attack whereby a legitimate, and previously delivered, email containing an attachment or link has had its content and recipient address(es) taken and used to create an almost identical or cloned email.

The attachment or link within the email is replaced with a malicious version and then sent from an email address spoofed to appear to come from the original sender. It may claim to be a resend of the original or an updated version to the original.

Whale Phishing

Whale Phishing, or Whaling, is like Spear Phishing, instead, they target the very big fish – CEOs, Directors and other high-value targets.

Company board members are thought to be an extremely high-risk target, due to the fact they have a great deal of authority within a company, but since they aren’t full-time employees, they often use personal email addresses for business-related communication, which usually, doesn’t have the security factors and added protection offered by a business email.

Smishing and Vishing

Both smishing and vishing move away from email to employ telephones as their preferred means of communication. Smishing entails criminals sending text messages that contain content similar to email phishing attempts, while vishing revolves around engaging in telephone conversations.

Angler Phishing

Social media, is the relatively new kid on the block, providing numerous avenues for criminals to deceive individuals. They can employ tactics such as fake URLs, cloned websites, posts, and tweets, as well as instant messaging (which essentially mirrors smishing) to manipulate people into disclosing sensitive information or downloading malware.

 


 

The Top 10 Most Impersonated Brands

As mentioned above, Phishing is most effective when impersonating your favourite and most popular services, some of which you’ll probably already have an account with, or at least be familiar with – making the emails a lot more plausible.

Taken from a recent survey by Vade, the top 10 most impersonated brands are:

  1. Facebook
  2. Microsoft
  3. Google
  4. PayPal
  5. MTB
  6. Orange
  7. Crédit Agricole
  8. WhatsApp
  9. La Banque Postale
  10. au

This doesn’t say that these are the only brands out there being targeted, it’s just more likely that a victim will actually have one or more of these accounts, making a victim more susceptible to trusting and clicking on the email.

 


 

Top 5 Most Commonly Used Email Subject Lines

A hackers biggest challenge is getting a victim to even open an email, let alone clicking on it, that’s why they use scare tactics when choosing subject lines.

According to research from KnowBe4, the most common subject lines to real-life phishing emails in Q3 of 2022 were as follows:

  1. Equipment and Software Update
  2. Mail Notification: You have 5 Encrypted Messages
  3. Amazon: Amazon – delayed shipping
  4. Google: Password Expiration Notice
  5. Action required: Your payment was declined

As you can see, all of the above use tactics which require immediate attention or action, creating urgency or putting a victim into a state of panic, affecting judgement when clicking on a link.

So the next time you get an email from Google asking you to change your password or your credit card saying your payment was declined, think twice and check that the email is actually real.

 


 

How Can I Check If an Email Is Real?

Whilst hackers are getting smarter in their phishing techniques, they’re still human, and its the human errors that are easiest to spot. Here are a few obvious things to look out for:

 

URL’s

Often URLs will appear like the real thing, but by simply hovering your mouse over the top of the URL or checking the info on it, you should can the actual address. If the address differs from the display email – something isn’t quite right. You can also do the same with the ‘from’ address, check if the domain name is associated with the company it claims to be. For example, if you receive an email from what you think is your bank but the email domain is Gmail, or the name is misspelt in any way, it’s most definitely a scam.

 

Spelling & Grammar

Brands are pretty serious about their image, so it’s very rare for an official brands email to have major spelling mistakes or poor grammar. Read your emails carefully and report anything that seems suspicious.

 

Personalisation

Phishing emails are usually sent in mass, generally to thousands if not millions of email addresses at any one time, so the chances are, it won’t be personalised. You’ll most likely get an email saying “Dear Member” or “Valued Customer”, as to real first name personalisation.

 


 

The Dangers of Phishing

Not only can phishing have an immediate financial impact on your business, but it can also cause permanent damage to your brand.

Whilst most would agree that Phishing attacks and data breaches impact a company’s bottom line, they can also cause so much more damage than just the initial financial loss.

Organisations lose approximately $180 (£143) for each piece of personal information stolen in a phishing attack, according to Venari Security. IBM also found that the average cost of a data breach rose from $4.24 million (£3.42 million) in 2021 to $4.35 million (£3.51 million) in 2022.

Like most forms of cybercrime, attacks are usually spotted too late, In fact, its quite common for hacks to be discovered by customers and not the company itself. In fact, it’s quite common for hacks to be discovered by customers and not the company itself. In the UK, organisations took an average of 181 days to identify the fact that a breach had occurred and a further 75 days to contain the incident.

So as we trust a business with our personal and financial details, we also expect to be able to shop securely online as standard, knowing our credentials are in safe hands – but with so many outlets and choices online nowadays, it doesn’t take much for a customer to take their custom elsewhere, especially in light of a cyber attack or some form of breach.

In addition to losing existing customers, the news of a hack is one the press and social media will take a shine to, instantly damaging a brands overall image. Readers will judge quickly, casting doubt over the business, and whether you are a small time business or one of the world’s biggest and best-known brands, people need to have confidence in how you store and manage their personal details online.

However, it doesn’t stop there, in addition to being left red-faced and dealing with financial losses, customers can then also file lawsuits where a business can be fined for non-compliance with data protection regulations – highlighting the seriousness of phishing and cybercrime.

 


 

How Do I Protect Against Phishing Attacks?

User Education

One way to protect your business from phishing is user education, and this should involve all employees at every level.

Whilst all employees are at risk, CEO’s, Executives and Board members are most commonly the dream target for hackers, so education is needed at the top as well as the bottom of an organisation chart.

Educate and teach your employees how to recognise a phishing email using some of the tips highlighted above, and equally, if not, more importantly, know what to do when they receive one. Put a procedure in place where they can quarantine and report the emails safely – ensuring they don’t click or download any attachments.

However, whilst user education is essential to protecting a business, the emails are becoming more convincing, and worryingly, tactics are becoming far more advanced than we imagined, so technology is the only sure-fire way to get the upper hand on phishing.

 

Security Technology

No single cybersecurity strategy can prevent phishing attacks. Instead, businesses must take a layered approach to reduce the number of attacks and lessen their impact if and when they do occur.

Network security technologies that should be implemented include email and web security, malware protection, user behaviour monitoring, and access control.

So whilst one solution won’t give you 100% protection from phishing, an obvious place to would be something like Cisco’s Umbrella and Duo’s multi-factor authentication.

As the industry’s first Secure Internet Gateway in the cloud, Cisco Umbrella provides the first line of defence against threats on the internet. Because Umbrella is delivered from the cloud, it is the easiest way to protect all of your users in minutes.

Whereas, Duo’s MFA and 2FA (two-factor authentication) app and access tools can help make security resilience easy for your organisation, with user-friendly features for secure access, strong authentication and device monitoring.

 


 

Still Need Convincing?

Do you still think you’re invincible? Don’t think it will happen to you?

Send us your details below and get a FREE Cybersecurity Consultation!

We’ll carry out a FREE no-obligation consultation at your business and examine your existing infrastructure and security network(s). As well as examine what you’re currently doing, we will advise on how you can best protect your data – and help prepare you and your business for the imminent threat of a cyberattack.

Don’t take the risk, get in touch today!


We’re proud to announce that we are now proud sponsors of Rutherford A.F.C’s under 11’s team.

Gateshead-based football club Rutherford A.F.C approached Advantex with the hope of securing sponsorship during these testing and unprecedented times, and with our very own Storeman, Joel Byers’ son playing for the team, we jumped at the chance to offer a helping hand to such great community-led cause.

Advantex also has sponsorships deals with the likes of League 1 Sunderland A.F.C, Championship side Middlesbrough F.C. and Brandon Girls team – adding Rutherford A.F.C to a growing list of prestigious and proud partnerships.

Competing in the Russell Foster Youth League, one of the most competitive leagues in the region, Rutherford A.F.C plays their games at their Beggarswood Park pitch in Lobley Hill, so go check them out if you get a chance – and keep an eye out for the Advantex logo on the back of their winter jackets 😉

 

We’ve all heard of CCTV or closed-circuit television, but things have moved on quite a bit since the days of dumb cameras and coaxial cabling with analogue or digital recorders.

Steve O'Connell, Advantex

CCTV has been around for decades, often used to monitor and record empty spaces or closed doors – but the world we live in has changed, naturally, so have our demands and needs, paving the way for an innovative landscape utilising the advanced technologies of IP camera and video surveillance systems.

Combined with creative minds and even more intelligent technology, the possibilities of IP Surveillance are endless.

Scrapping public misconceptions and discussing the possibilities, Advantex Sales and Marketing Director, Steve O’Connell dives into the future of IP Surveillance and highlights the benefits to you and your business for decades to come.

 


 

Public Misconceptions

The technology available or the possibilities isn’t lacking, it’s the misconceptions of surveillance by the public holding things up. A lot of, if not most people outside of the industry think of surveillance as a camera stuck on a wall to protect a home or business, but surveillance has evolved and it is critical that we change the way these systems are discussed and conceived by the public.

 


 

IP – Internet Protocol.

Internet Protocol, or IP, that was the real ‘game-changer’ and it plays a major part in our everyday lives, it’s literally all around us. IP is in our everyday appliances and some are so advanced, they even know when you run out of milk – but that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Everything is linked to that same IP platform or what we now call the Internet of Things (IoT). it’s that same connectivity that allows for collaboration and access to valuable information for businesses.

Advantex first utilised this technology at a North East car manufacturing plant where quality control was an issue. Robots on the manufacturing line were making small but costly mistakes when spot-welding body parts together, and almost impossible to see at a glance, the errors were going unnoticed until they got all way down the line, causing down-time and significant financial costs to the business.

By installing a camera in an area that had already had an IT network meant we could quickly and easily deploy the system onto their existing infrastructure, allowing us to analyse high-definition footage to identify what happened using motion detection systems, then setting up an alert that would trigger when that same anomaly happened again in the future – preventing downtime and ultimately saving the business money.

Fast-forward a decade, and the IoT has changed the entire surveillance landscape, allowing it to constantly evolve, innovate and have a real impact on the world we live in today.

IP surveillance, as it’s more commonly known in the industry, is run on the IoT and has many uses, whether it be the basics of protecting a workplace or property, right down to PPE detection, access control, monitoring production lines, facial recognition, or more so in these strange and unprecedented times of the coronavirus pandemic, fever detection or crowd monitoring – gone are the days of primitive CCTV.

 


The Possibilities

On another site, for example, we have in place a facial recognition system that is linked to a machine that requires specialist training to operate.

The user has a card to identify themselves (can’t use biometrics due to safety equipment) then the camera confirms that it is not only that person, but that they also have the correct certifications to operate such machinery.

If for example they don’t have the correct certificates, or they’ve expired, a notification will be sent to their line manager to take appropriate action but also prevents that person unlawfully using that machine.

 


The Future

With the adoption of analytical solutions and machine learning, the possibilities are endless.

If we just look at the advancements we have made in past 10 years, I dare not imagine what we will achieve with machine learning and IoT utilising collaborative systems in the next decade, the future is bright.

 

Businesses across the world are adapting to the Coronavirus pandemic, with the majority either implementing remote working or putting measures in place for reduced workforces to carry on in their place of work. However, with such a big change, comes an even bigger risk from hackers and cybercriminals alike, but does it also hit the reset button for cybersecurity and give it the much-needed attention it needs?

It tops the list for the most talked about topic in 2020 and it’s been on the front of every newspaper, news channel, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn feed – we simply can’t escape it, but the main thing to point out here is that it’s not going anywhere fast. Yup, I’m talking about COVID-19, and yes, you read that right, it’s here to stay.

COVID-19 is now a part of our everyday lives, it’s become the ‘new normal’, whatever that is, but with or without a vaccination, we already have and will continue to adapt to the new way of living, but more so, adapt to the new way of working.

In a recent survey from the folk at (ISC)², they revealed that 96% of respondents’ organisations had closed their physical work environments and moved to remote work-from-home policies, highlighting how many businesses across the globe are adapting in these unprecedented times.

Having the ability to introduce work-from-home policies and enable remote working for staff isn’t anything new, but for many who’ll say they’ve done it for years with the simple idea of taking your laptop, monitors and phone home being suffice, are wrong, in fact, you’re the most vulnerable and are at serious risk from being attacked.

 


 

Risk, What Risk?

Picture this, you’re rushing about trying to juggle the kids’ breakfast and getting dressed when you realise you have minutes to spare before your weekly meeting with the boss. Frantically rushing about, you click on any link that gets you onto that meeting on time, however, that link you just clicked installed a piece of malware onto your machine without you even knowing – scary, right?

In the same survey, the (ISC)² also reported that 23% of respondents said cybersecurity incidents experienced by their organisation have increased since transitioning to remote work, with some tracking as many as double the number of incidents – not even worth thinking about the damage caused.

It’s no wonder we’re seeing malware and phishing attacks increase tenfold since the start of the pandemic, in fact, the NCSC (National Cyber Security Centre) has removed thousands upon thousands of scam sites since the beginning of the outbreak, all with the hope of deceiving the public out of their hard-earned cash.

But here’s the confusing bit, over 81% of respondents also said that security was an essential function at this time, yet we’re still seeing businesses fall to their knees because they’ve only talked about it and not acted on the matter, begging the question, can you afford to take the risk?

 


 

Whose Responsibility Is It Anyway?

Whether you’re reading this an employer or an employee, equally, the answer is the same, it’s YOUR responsibility.

Your home devices are again, your responsibility, but when it comes to work computers, laptops and mobile devices, it’s the responsibility of the employer.

If you’re an employee with a work machine connected at home with no form of cybersecurity solution in place, stop what you’re doing and let your employer know the risks, even share this article, but if you’re the employer, listen up.

Think about the fundamentals of your business, what it is you do, what service you provide, and to who, think of all your assets, whether it be technology or data, think about what you’ve got to lose? As that’s exactly what you will, lose.

They’re all valuable and essential to the running of your business, and without them, what do you have? I’m not just talking about the financial loss from your GDPR-related fine or from a piece of technology becoming redundant, I’m talking about the reputational damage, ask yourself, would you survive?

Now you should be asking yourself, is that worth the risk?

The answer is NO. Absolutely NO. One hundred, million percent NO. So why are so many still choosing to ignore the responsibility? Is it a case of, “it’ll never happen to us”, “they’ll not target a little company in the North East like us”, well that’s where you’re wrong, you’re a hackers dream, the low hanging fruit, an “absolute belter” as they’d say on the streets of the region, but it is now your responsibility to change that and protect your business once and for all.

 


Clouds and Umbrellas. What?

I’m not talking about rainclouds nor the things to stop you getting wet, I’m talking about a cloud-based security solution called Umbrella from the clever folk at Cisco.

Cloud-delivered, Cisco Umbrella offers flexible security when and how you need it. It combines multiple security functions into one solution, so you can extend protection to devices, remote users, and distributed locations anywhere. Umbrella is the easiest way to effectively protect your users everywhere in minutes.

In a nutshell, Cisco Umbrella protects your business and users from malware and phishing, a cloud-based firewall to stop threats as they happen – giving you the ultimate peace of mind for when you do get attacked, as it’s a matter of when not if.

As a Cisco Premier Partner, we can exclusively offer you a FREE no-obligation 14-day trial of Umbrella. No payment details needed, or strings attached, we simply want you to see how effective it is in the fight against cybercrime.

Start your FREE 14-day trial today.

START YOUR FREE TRIAL

 

 

Join us and the rest of the UK as we pay tribute to the service and sacrifice of those who served in WWII and to celebrate the 75th anniversary of VE Day.

 


 

What is VE Day 75?

It’s been 75 years to the moment the nation stood still, and the guns across Europe fell silent after the war with Nazi Germany came to an end.

Following six years of brutal conflict, which saw the lives of millions of soldiers and civilians lost, the war was officially declared over at one minute past midnight on May the 8th 1945.

Celebrations broke out across the nation, and each year since, celebrations have taken place on a date marked down in the history books as VE Day.

 


 

How to Celebrate VE Day 75

2020 is the 75th anniversary of VE Day, and like every year, Advantex will be in full support.

Offices and the streets of the nation might not be having their Union jack filled parties as planned, but you can still get involved from the comfort of your own home, safely.

Whilst celebrations might be a tad different this year due to the Coronavirus pandemic, I’m sure you’ll join us from the comfort of your home of raising a glass in the ‘Nations Toast’ to honour our World War heroes at 3pm on Friday 8th of May.

 


 

Our Way of Saying Thank You

Not only do we celebrate and donate to the likes of the VE Day and the Poppy Appeal charities each year, but we’re also supporters of the Armed Forces Covenant and proudly partner with an amazing local charity, Veterans In Crisis in Sunderland.

Pictured above are Steve O’Connel and Commanding Officer Graham Deighton signing the Covenant for Advantex Network Solutions. Steve said:

“Being a former Royal Marine myself is obviously something I am very proud of, but to be able to build a successful business like Advantex and have the opportunity to give back to those who served is fantastic”

Steve isn’t the only former serviceman at Advantex, account managers David Cooling who served as a Submariner in the Royal Navy, and Dave Armstrong who also served in the Royal Marines, as well as our engineers Mario Rush, Campbell Stott, Adam Walker and Andy Fluen who served in the Army – highlighting the already present commitment to those who have served.

Steve O'Connell of Advantex with Ger Fowler and John Sargent of Veterans in Crisis

The Armed Forces Covenant was introduced to Advantex by our friends and client, Veterans in Crisis Sunderland, a fantastic cause who dedicate their time, effort and resources into helping former service men and women who have fallen on hard times.

As a business steeped in military history, we’re extremely proud to support all those who have served, both past and present, and will continue to do so throughout the future.

 

 

Connecting, communicating and collaborating on-the-go or at home is one thing, but doing it securely is another – here are our 3 top security tips for remote and home working.

The modern workplace is forever-changing because of societal factors like globalisation, but also in response to new drivers like disability and mobility, more so, to deal with emerging new threats like the global Coronavirus pandemic, (COVID-19).

We understand both the importance of keeping a business up and running, as well as the welfare and wellbeing of staff, that’s why we provide state-of-the-art affordable solutions that enable a business to connect, communicate and collaborate. Anywhere. Anytime.

However, whilst we all have the capability of working from home, we must ensure it is safe to do so.

There are many products and solutions that can protect your assets and devices outside the workplace, but it can be quite confusing and overwhelming to know which are the right ones and what you should be protecting, so here are our top 3 security tips for working from home and on the go.

 


 

1. Get a Good VPN

The easiest and safest way to protect your data as it moves from your internal core system (your office) to your home or remote workers is a via a virtual private network, or more commonly known, VPN.

Not only does a VPN hide a users IP address, but it also masks a users location and encrypts all data as it’s in transit, making it near impossible to unscramble and pretty useless to hackers.

Depending on the size of your organisation, that could determine what sort of budget you have to spend on such tools, and whilst there are free VPN providers out there, we’d strongly advise you to think twice, as, like most things, you get what you pay for, and can you really afford to take the risk when it comes to your company data?

Of course, we’d fully expect you to do due diligence before selecting a VPN provider, but as a Cisco Premier Partner, we and the majority of our clients use Cisco AnyConnect, the industries leading and most secure VPN tool on the market.

With Cisco’s AnyConnect, you can empower your employees to work from anywhere, on company laptops or personal mobile devices, at any time.

AnyConnect simplifies secure endpoint access and provides the security necessary to help keep your organisation safe and protected – giving you the ultimate peace of mind your business and employees are secure online.

 


 

2. Use MFA

Having a secure connection is one thing, but ensuring who’s on the end of that connection is another.

With multi-factor authentication, more commonly known as two-factor or MFA, is a solution that verifies and ensures that your users are exactly who they say they are before they can proceed to business-critical information.

In most cases, MFA protects your device and applications by using a second source of validation, like a phone or token, to verify user identity before granting access.

Adding that simple and extra layer of security gives employers the confidence to enable home and remote working knowing only authorised employees are on the other end.

Cisco Duo is a cost-effective cloud-based MFA tool that integrates with your existing technology, providing a streamlined login experience for every user and application.

Duo is easy to manage and gives employers full visibility of who is logged in where and when, it also boasts the functionality to revoke access if needed.

Cisco Duo is fast becoming one of the industries leading MFA tools, and as a Cisco Premier Partner, we are proud to supply the technology with attractive costs per user.

 


 

3. Get Cloud Security, Now!

One of, if not the most important solution any business should have, whether on-site or at home, is cloud security.

Cloud security is the protection of data, applications, and infrastructures involved in cloud computing, in a nutshell, anything connected to the internet, it protects.

Cloud security solutions integrate with your existing hardware and software, giving a full wrap-around approach to keep your users and business safe from the forever growing number of threats online.

With Cisco Umbrella, you will empower your employees to work from home and on-the-go, giving you the ultimate peace of mind knowing their computer and devices have maximum security, no matter where and when they decide to work.

 


 

Whilst offering your employees the opportunity work from home isn’t a necessity of a modern-day business, yet, in these unprecedented times, it has become the norm for millions across the globe – questioning the possibilities and scalability of each and every business in operation today.

The reality is, to survive, a business must solider on and smile in the face of adversity, tackling what’s in front of it, and with the number of emerging new and existing technologies available, you and your business can do just that.

If you would like to discuss what readily-available options you have to enable remote working in your business, then head over to advantex.uk.com/service/internet/remote-working where we have an array of FREE trials to help get you secure during this time.

 

Remote Working Solutions

 

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is causing confusion and uncertainty across the globe. Businesses are attempting to deal with the outbreak by following World Health Organization (WHO) guidance on how to protect workers while continuing to operate normally.

At Advantex, we have enabled a work-from-home policy to limit the potential spread of infection, with a skeleton support staff at the office, site-based teams working independently and a reduction of face to face meetings with our clients with the use of technology.

While we implement our business continuity processes, I want to assure you that we are operating as normal. You will continue to receive the exemplary levels of service that you know and come to expect from Advantex, and we will be utilising all the technologies at our disposal to engage and support you through this unprecedented time.

We also understand both the importance of keeping your business up and running, as well as the welfare and well-being of your staff and are here to support you if needed with solutions including;

  • VPN access for remote workers using Microsoft or Cisco
  • Microsoft Teams or Mitel for remote collaboration
  • Microsoft Office 365 SharePoint and Azure for cloud-based services
  • Diversion of calls to remote sites or users

Also, commencing with immediate effect, Advantex is working in collaboration with Cisco who have extended the free of charge period on the following security solutions to at least 6 weeks, allowing you to simply and cost-effectively implement a work from home capability for your business that will reduce the chance of a cyber-attack;

Cisco-Umbrella-Logo

  • DNS layer protection for off-net users not using VPN
  • 14-day trial extended to 90 days
  • Protection from web-based malware for remote users

 

Duo-Logo

  • Best in class multifactor authentication
  • Existing customers can exceed their user limit to support an increase in remote workers
  • New customers can get a free license

 

Cisco-Any-Connect

  • VPN enabling remote workers to safely haul back to the corporate network
  • Existing customers can exceed their user limit to support an increase in remote workers
  • New customers can get a free license

 

Start Your FREE Trial

 

Our commitment to you during this situation remains as strong as ever so if there is anything you feel we need to do to help you with business continuity then please get in touch today.

Stay safe.

 

Steve O’Connell, Sales & Marketing Director

 

 

As the dust settles on the first-ever Cybersecurity Summit: North East, we take a quick look back at the day.

Wednesday 11th of March saw some of the world’s leading technology and cybersecurity experts come to the region, with the likes of Cisco, Zerto, Milestone, Veeam and Axis to name a few, all in attendance.

The Cybersecurity Summit: North East was hosted at the famous Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art on the banks of the River Tyne, where over a 100+ cybersecurity enthusiasts and professionals gathered to be inspired and educated by some of the brightest minds in the industry.

Kicking thing’s off was the day’s compère, award-winning radio presenter, commentator and PR specialist, Justin Lockwood, getting the day started with an introduction to what was happening and where.

Compere, Justin Lockwood at Cybersecurity Summit: North East

Security in the Digital World

The day’s first keynote speaker was Cisco’s UK CTO, Rob Price with his ‘Security in the Digital World’ talk, giving an overview of the digital landscape, highlighting how it affects you, and shares
valuable insights on how to apply security in the digital world.

Cisco's Rob Price on stage at the Cybersecurity Summit: North East

Confessions of a Nerdy Hacker

Following Rob was Tom Johnson of Ingrata:Sec, a local ethical hacker and social engineer with his talk ‘Confessions of a Nerdy Hacker’.

Starting at a young age, Tom has always had a passion for hacking, right from the very moment he received his very own computer for Christmas as a child. With many ups and downs, from black hat activity in his early teens to working alongside the FBI under the National Police Chiefs Council, Tom will touch upon Ethics vs Morals, Social Engineering, Card Cloning & OSINT.

Ethical Hacker, Tom Johnson at Cybersecurity Summit: North East

In addition to the talks on the main stage, breakout sessions in the Technology Hub and Workshops rooms went on across the day.

Cybersecurity: Lifecycle Management

Steven Kenny of Axis Communications gave attendees an insight into Cybersecurity: Lifecycle Management.

With the convergence of security technologies, it is important to understand the new Cybersecurity related challenges being faced by Physical security practitioners. One of the key components is the evaluations of your vendors cyber maturity. Learn to ask the right questions from within your supply chain and look beyond the traditional technical features within the technology and at a business policies and processes.

Veeam Demo Lab

Next up was Veeam’s Demo lab delivered by Nikolay Stankevich.

A technical workshop covering:

1. Veeam Backup & Replication:

  • Modular architecture
  • Agent / agent-less approach
  • IVMR, Explorers, DataLabs
  • Storage Integrations

2. Veeam One

  • Reporting capabilities + monitoring

3. Veeam Backup for Microsoft Office 365

4. Veeam Availability Orchestrator

Veeam's Nikolay Stankevich at at the Cybersecurity Summit: North East

Cybersecurity: A Cultural Perspective

Dynamo North East Director, Phil Jackman gave his ‘Cybersecurity: A Cultural Perspective’ talk on the main stage.

Cybersecurity is thought of as a technical problem but is it? How much does the culture of your organisation contribute to its vulnerability?

Phil Jackman on stage at the Cybersecurity Summit: North East

What Is Cyber Resilience?

Zerto took to the Technology Hub teach the audience on how to prepare for, respond to and recover from a cyber-attack.

Zerto's Darren at Cybersecurity Summit: North East

Think You Have GDPR Covered? What Happens When a Breach Occurs?

Security Risk Management (SRM) is an information security consultancy and one of the UK’s leading breach investigators, handling payment card forensic investigations on a daily basis. Katie McMillan and Alan Batey of SRM took to the main stage to look beyond the legal ramifications of GDPR and demonstrate how a proactive approach to information security can reduce risk and enable a more effective response in the event of a breach.

SRM on stage at the Cybersecurity Summit: North East

How Secure Is Your Security System?

It’s ironic that your businesses “Physical Security System’s” could well be “Insecurity” that allows a back door to your corporate network. In this presentation Martin McGrath of Milestone Systems looked at the potential floors in IP based security systems, building management systems and more. They looked at live, legal websites that allow anyone to search for security systems that are connected to the web, demonstrating how bad password management is enabling websites to stream images from cameras quite legally.

Martin McGrath of Milestone at the Cybersecurity Summit: North East

When Bosses Panic

Comstor’s Andy Hook ran a workshop that helped attendees to understand the security threats to their network and how Cisco Security solutions provide Threat Hunting tools and intelligence. Now more than ever you need to provide network security before, during and after an attack. Utilising Cisco Threat Hunting reassures you that the tools and systems implemented are delivering the results. The session was split to a short positioning piece and then into a short guided hands-on workshop.

Andy Hook of Comstor at the Cybersecurity Summit: North East

A Layered Approach to Cybersecurity

Unfortunately, there is no silver bullet to guarantee effective security, nor a single out-of-the-box solution that can ensure security across modern distributed networks. In order to defend against today’s threats, IT professionals must take a layered approach to their cybersecurity. Learn how companies are adopting this approach and what the tools are that they use to protect their data from Cybercriminals. Our very own Sales & Marketing Director, Steve O’Connell took to the main stage to give his ‘A Layered Approach to Cybersecurity’ talk.

Advantex Sales and Marketing Director, Steve O'Connell at Cybersecurity Summit: North East

Seeing Is Believing

Following the success of his earlier talk, the room was filled with enthusiastic onlookers of ethical hacker, Tom Johnsons workshop. Demonstrating live how easy it is to be breached. Utilising his ethical hacking simulator,
Tom covered things like data leakage, dumpster diving and OSINT.

Tom Johnson workshop at the Cybersecurity Summit: North East A packed room for Tom Johnson's workshop

Introducing Secure X

Cybersecurity experts, Farana Cheema and Luke Hebditch introduced and gave an overview of the all-new and latest offering from Cisco, Secure X. Not only did attendees learn what’s to come, but they also got an insight into threat hunting, what to expect and how to prepare to the forever-growing number of threats online.

Cisco's Farana Cheema on stage at the Cybersecurity Summit: North East

The Happiest Hour

Clocking off for the day in style, the happiest hour was the perfect opportunity for attendees to network and rub shoulders with complimentary drinks to reflect on what was an awesome day.

Following an amazing and successful day, we’re already looking forward to next year’s summit. #CSNE20

Some of the world’s leading cybersecurity and technology experts are set to arrive on the banks of the River Tyne for what is set to be the North East’s ultimate cybersecurity event.

With headline sponsorship from Cisco and ourselves, the event will take place on Wednesday, March 11th, where over 150+ business leaders, IT and cybersecurity professionals will rub shoulders and be inspired at the famous Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art in Gateshead.

 

The ‘Cybersecurity Summit: North East’ is the first of its kind in the region and has already attracted sponsors and speakers from some of the world’s leading cybersecurity and IT companies, with Cisco, Axis, Zerto and Veeam to name a few, already signed up.

The events platinum sponsors, Advantex and technology conglomerate, Cisco are proud to bring such an event to the region, with our very own Sales & Marketing Director, Steve O’Connell adding:

“To bring companies like Cisco, Zerto, Axis and Veeam to the North East is huge!

Whilst the North East is booming with technology and talent, it’s often neglected with things like events, usually, they’re overseas or the closest being in places like London, Manchester or Edinburgh, so to have something of this scale in the region is something we’re extremely proud of.

We’ve had a fantastic response from the public so far, tickets are flying off the shelf, so we urge anyone wishing to go to sign up as soon as possible!”

The March event will see technology and security experts discuss the current cybersecurity landscape, highlighting the threats, what’s at risk, and more importantly, how to prevent the imminent threat of an attack.

Farana Cheema, Cybersecurity Channel & Distribution AM UKI at Cisco added:

“With a presence in four corners of the globe, having the opportunity of sharing insights and showcasing the technology of Cisco to the North East is fantastic, something we’re very excited about and can’t wait for March 11th.”

Attendees will leave the summit with notepads full of ideas they can action as soon as they get back to the office, not to mention brag to their co-workers they’ve attended the cybersecurity event of the year, and if endless inspiration isn’t enough, attendees will get the opportunity to network and talk all things cyber with some of the brightest and most talented people in the region – there’s even complimentary food and drinks across the day.

 

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