How companies can deal with the threat of new browser-in-the-browser phishing attacks by regaining control of network access and password distribution.
By Julia O’Toole, Founder and CEO of MyCena Security Solutions
In 2022, the biggest threat vector is phishing attacks, which account for more than 80% of all violations of individuals and organizations. These are the result of misused or stolen passwords; Hackers, despite having their names, do not “hack in”, but log in using certificates phished through social engineering. This possibility of an error of judgment on the part of the individual can have a profound effect on the whole organization.
Cyber attackers are also becoming more intelligent in how they infringe on organizations. In mid-March 2022, an innovative phishing strategy called Browser-in-the-Browser (BTB) Attack was unveiled by an Infosec researcher who used simulated browser windows and other authentication service providers to steal login credentials.
Bitcoin attacks act as an extension of existing clickjacking or user-interface remedies that alter the appearance of browsers and web pages to bypass user security controls. With this technique, a completely artificial replica is created – a user thinks they are seeing the original popup window, but it is fake in the page.
“Very few people will notice a slight difference between the two,” according to the report. “Once landed on an attacker-owned website, users will feel comfortable because their credentials appear to be legitimate.”
Remove the danger by regaining control
The risk aversion posed by the BitBy phishing attack depends on the business that employees can no longer create, view or type passwords to access the company’s files, apps and systems. This is the amount of withdrawal of access control and removal of the risk of human error from the network access process.
To the untrained eye, which may be most employees, such phishing attacks are dangerous but impossible to identify. What it takes for an undoubted employee to make a mistake and it compromises the whole network.
Such attacks are not for quick cash payments. Actors will sit inside your system and wait for the most damage. All the while, users continue to work without realizing that their credentials have passed.
This type of attack has been used in the past. In 2020, cybercriminals used a similar Beatty strategy on video game digital distribution service Steam to gain access to consumers’ credentials. While this may be to the detriment of individuals, what we are now seeing is a more aggressive attack on an organizational level. For the security of your business, it’s time to take responsibility and start controlling your own access
Password managers are not the solution
Although some have suggested using a password manager and a single sign-on tool to avoid the problem, since they automatically input the password without having to read for the duplicate window, it still presents major problems.
Centralizing multiple passwords behind the manager’s master password does nothing to prevent access fraud. It only centralizes access information for hackers in a breach situation. This was the case with the Lapsus $ group who, after infiltrating Okta’s network, were able to easily find an Excel document filled with the passwords of LastPass administrators to access Okta’s clients.
The password manager and the single sign-on tool can provide a surface layer of convenience for users, but in the event of a breach, Silver Platter offers their company key in the state. Instead, access segmentation and encrypted password distribution is a more effective solution that completely eliminates the potential threat of human error or forgery from the equation and protects the integrity of access.
In addition, the business may see the application of doubling with the Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) method as a precaution. But the initial loss of their access control means that the MFA cannot guarantee the legitimacy or integrity of the access. Cyber-attackers have found many ways to infiltrate them, as we have seen recently through known vulnerabilities in the MFA protocol. Relying on MFA instead of fully protecting your cyber security and cyber resilience only suspends an inevitable breach of access.
It is no longer enough to rely on traditional methods
Cyber attackers are more intelligent and relentless when it comes to modern day phishing scams. Returning access control, partitioning, and security to the organizational side ensures that employees no longer need to create, view, or type passwords. Accepting encrypted credentials, using a secure way to save them means cyber actors don’t have to worry about accidentally leaking them.
By sharing access across their entire digital infrastructure, and distributing uniquely encrypted passwords directly to their employees, businesses eliminate the possibility of unauthorized password sharing, theft or phishing. Any breach can be contained on a system, which means that in the event of another BitB attack, the rest of your network is protected from damage. This allows companies to stay one step ahead of the ransomware threat.
About the author
Julia O’Toole, Founder and CEO of MySina Security Solutions, a groundbreaking solution for managing, distributing and securing digital access. The inventor and author of several patents, Julia uses mathematics, neuroscience and technology to research and design simple but innovative solutions to complex problems. Julia’s areas of research and expertise include cyber security, collaboration and search. Julia founded MyCena in 2016, which has since become a market leader in segmented access management and secure password distribution. Through its ground-breaking patent security system, MyCena protects companies from the risk of password errors, phishing and phishing, loss of command and control, ransomware and supply chain cyber attacks.
Julia can be reached online at [email protected] or linkedin.com/in/juliaotoole And on our company’s website http://www.mycena.co
Notice of fair use: Under the “fair use” law, other authors may restrict the use of the original author’s work without permission. 17 In accordance with US Code § 107, certain use of copyrighted material “for the purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not a copyright infringement.” As a matter of policy, fair use is based on the belief that parts of copyrighted material are free to be used for the purpose of public comment and criticism. The privilege of fair use is perhaps the most significant limitation of the exclusive rights of a copyright owner. Cyber Defense Media Group is a news reporting company that reports cyber news, events, information and much more on our website Cyber Defense Magazine at no charge. All images and reporting are done exclusively under the fair use of US copyright law.
