Towerwall Security Alert 2013

As the year draws to a close, it's time for us to take a step back, absorb the lessons of 2012, and look at what 2013 and beyond will bring for users, the security industry, and even cybercriminals. We know this time of year is incredibly busy and as a trusted advisor, you expect Towerwall to stay on the cutting edge of security information and share our findings. To help you understand the impacts of threats to your business, we would like to share Trend Micro's 2013 forecast report, "Security Threats to Business, the Digital Lifestyle, and the Cloud: Trend Micro Predictions for 2013 and Beyond".
In 2013, managing the security of devices, small business systems, and large enterprise networks will be more complex than ever before. Users are breaking down the PC monoculture by embracing a wider variety of platforms, each with its own user interface, OS, and security model. Businesses, meanwhile, are grappling with protecting intellectual property and business information as they tackle consumerization, virtualization, and cloud platforms head-on. This divergence in computing experience will further expand opportunities for cybercriminals and other threat actors to gain profit, steal information, and sabotage their targets' operations.

Top 4 findings:

1. The most serious threat during 2013 may be malicious and high-risk Android apps. we predict they will reach 1 million in 2013, up from 350,000 at the end of 2012.
2. While traditional PC malware may recede a bit next year, threats to devices running the Android operating system will more than replace it.
3. The emergence of more digital lifestyle devices means that threats could appear in new and unexpected places, such as television sets and home appliances.
4. Africa appears on its way to becoming the next safe harbor for cybercriminals on the run.

Other predictions include:

1. Slow adoption of Windows 8 by business means consumers will be the leading beneficiaries from its security enhancements during the coming year.
2. Cybercriminals will target legitimate cloud services and data breaches will remain a serious threat in 2013, in part because existing security tools do not protect cloud data as well as traditional storage.
3. Consumers will increasingly use multiple computing platforms and devices, making securing them a difficult challenge.
4. Politically motivated attacks will become more destructive during 2013.
5. Conventional malware threats will evolve gradually, with few, if any, significant new attacks. Still, attacks that do occur will become more sophisticated and harder to detect.
6. Efforts to address global cybercrime are gaining traction, but will take two or three more years to reach full implementation.

Download the report today for the complete details and learn how these predictions will affect your business, customers and end users.
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