BSI has forecast three key emerging trends across the cybersecurity landscape for 2019
- ePrivacy Regulation and related international standards
As organizations continue to grapple with the implementation of the GDPR, a new EU regulation will set additional rules to protect privacy and confidentiality in electronic communications. The ePrivacy Regulation will repeal the current ePrivacy Directive and is anticipated to come into force late 2019. The ePrivacy Regulation aims to guarantee the rights laid down in Article 7 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU, which guarantees the right to a private life and private communications.
Stephen O’Boyle, Global Head of Cybersecurity and Information Resilience Services at BSI said:
Unlike the GDPR, this future ePrivacy Regulation will come with significantly more complex requirements, including architectural compliance and integration.
He continued, “In 2019 it will be vital that all Information Technology and board level professionals acquaint themselves with this new regulation.”
- Upsurge in malware
Once considered to be more robust operating systems than their competitors, Linux and Mac OS cyber-attacks have been identified as another key area for growth in 2019, with the volume of Linux malware reported to have tripled since 2016.
Believing that these operating systems are less susceptible to cyber-attacks, could leave them exposed and there has been a reported rise in Linux-based attacks. As many Internet of Things (IoT) devices and web-based systems use Linux operating systems there could potentially be an increase in security breaches and security systems should be reevaluated to maintain cybersecurity.
Crypto mining malware is a significant area which will experience a surge. ‘Cryptojacking’ is a relatively new term which refers to the remote use of malware to take over a computer’s resources and uses them for cryptocurrency mining without a user’s explicit permission. Stephen O’Boyle said,
The upward trend involving the unauthorised use of individuals’ IT assets to mine digital currencies will persist, however these attacks will move away from being browser-based and instead will originate within your operating system.
- Critical infrastructure as key targeted sector
In 2019, critical infrastructures will continue to be involved in the cyberwarfare geopolitical landscape but will probably be subjected to more disruptive and offensive cyber-attacks.
The increase in focus on laws and regulations means that high levels of expertise will be required as the innovation of technology will be accompanied by unanticipated cyber risk from malware attackers and phishing campaigns.
