Explainer: How to effectively prevent cyber attacks

On Thursday, the government admitted to having fallen victim to attempted cyber-attacks on most government agency platforms.

The most affected platform was the eCitizen, which consolidates a number of government services.

According to Information, Communication, Technology and Digital Economy CS Eliud Owalo, no data was lost due to the breach.

He noted that all the attackers did was they tried jamming the system by making more than ordinary requests into the system and this slowed down access to the site.

"There was an attack and we are addressing that. We are not just coming up with remedial measures to address the current situation," Owalo said.

"We are ensuring that around this digitalisation space, we will build an elaborate risk mitigation framework for purposes of sustainable digitalisation."

Several agencies announced loss of access to services, including Kenya Power, Kenya Railways and NTSA among others.

Other services affected were bank-to-Mpesa transfer, M-shwari and KCB Mpesa, Mpesa App and My Safaricom app. The services have, however, resumed.

So, what is a Cyberattack? And how can it be prevented?

A cyber attack is any intentional effort to steal, expose, alter, disable, or destroy data, applications, or other assets through unauthorized access to a network, computer system, or digital device. This is according to IBM.

These attacks could come in many forms including, but not limited to malicious software,  distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, Phishing, SQL injection attacks, and Botnets, among others.

How to prevent;

The first best way to stop cyber-attacks is by training your employees about online safety, including the do’s and don’ts. This will equip them with the knowledge on what to expect, and the forms attacks come in.

Another way is by keeping your system and software updated at all times. This will strengthen any loopholes cyber criminals may exploit in attempts to compromise your data. This is according to Leaf.it.

It is advised that one identifies the kind of threat or attack they are dealing with in order to find a quick and effective solution to the same.

Users are advised to use strong, unique passwords and also multi-factor authentication to secure their accounts online. This way, online accounts will require more than one way to gain access, in case hackers try to.

While ways of breaching data and gaining access to people’s or companies’ confidential information evolve, firewalls provide protection against this. A firewall blocks such attacks on your system. It also helps in detecting intrusion attempts on one’s system.

It is important to always back up your data, in case you experience an attack. This will help you not lose data or experience downtimes, in case of an attack.

Another best method of preventing cyber attacks is by encrypting it or using a cloud storage service that provides end-to-end encryption. This will keep away cyber criminals from intercepting the data during the transfer process.

According to Knowledgehut, the use of Antivirus software will create a firewall to protect your network from viruses and will restrict the forced attempt to access your system. They will also access your devices and disks to prevent malicious attacks from breaching your business.

Review your cybersecurity policies and regularly check software, systems, and servers to ensure your business is fully secured, this is achieved by conducting regular audits on your infrastructure.

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