We’re sitting ducks.
You’d think that after years of cyberattacks, we’d be ready for more.
But we’re not.
“The United States must immediately get ready for domestic, cyber-enabled attacks on critical domestic infrastructure and guard against foreign-initiated information operations targeted at the American people, according to speakers and panelists at an Association of the U.S. Army symposium on Wednesday in Arlington, Virginia, “ reported WMUR.
The Hill reported, “Terrifying hacks on critical infrastructure have arrived. America isn’t ready.”
“Many federal agencies are not fully prepared to respond to cybersecurity incidents, the U.S. General Accountability Office said,” as noted by BusinessInsurance.com. “The report says that while 23 federal agencies’ chief financial officers have made progress in cybersecurity incident response preparedness, 20 have not met requirements.”
Even after years of devastating attacks, the most advanced country in the world is still ridiculously unprepared. Schools, financial institutions, government agencies, essential infrastructure, even millions of us still aren’t ready for more.
Just over the last few days, lending firm, LoanDepot fell victim to a ransomware attack.
“The Irvine, California-based nonbank holding company also said that it immediately took steps to contain the incident, launched an investigation into the matter, and started notifying regulators and law enforcement,” as noted by SecurityWeek.com. Even the lending company, Mr. Cooper, had to notify 14.7 million people that personal information was stolen in an attack.
We can blame cyber criminals for this all we want.
But at some point, we have to start looking into why companies, agencies, and individuals are still so pitifully unprepared, or, in some cases, unwilling to protect themselves.
Unfortunately, attacks like this may continue until the issue is taken far more seriously.
Also, until that happens, keep an eye on cybersecurity stocks – especially Palo Alto (PANW), Fortinet (FTNT), Crowdstrike (CRWD), and Zscaler (ZS).
Or, take a look at the cyber ETFs, such as:
Global X Cybersecurity ETF (BUG)
“The Global X Cybersecurity ETF (BUG) seeks to invest in companies that stand to potentially benefit from the increased adoption of cybersecurity technology, such as those whose principal business is in the development and management of security protocols preventing intrusion and attacks to systems, networks, applications, computers, and mobile devices,” says Global X.
iShares Cybersecurity and Tech ETF (IHAK)
According to iShares, “The iShares Cybersecurity and Tech ETF seeks to track the investment results of an index composed of developed and emerging market companies involved in cyber security and technology, including cyber security hardware, software, products, and services.”
