What Is Cyberthreat Protection? | Definition & Concepts

Let’s start by looking at what makes something a cyberthreat.

In short, a cyberthreat is anything that can harm systems or data—and by extension, the people and organizations associated with them—through destruction, theft, alteration, disclosure, or denial of access/service. Cyberthreats can be intentional or unintentional, but unintentional ones—such as weak passwords or other security loopholes—are usually called vulnerabilities.

The Evolution of Cyberthreats

In 1971, engineer Bob Thomas created Creeper, a program that could move from one computer to another. Creeper was a proof of concept with no malicious functionality (all it did was render a teletype message, “I’M THE CREEPER. CATCH ME IF YOU CAN.”), but it arguably birthed the concept of cyberthreats—and with it, the concept of cybersecurity, as well.

Cyberthreats have come a long way since then, as data and digital property have become more valuable and widespread. Solitary hackers out for bragging rights have given way to organized cybercrime enterprises out for profit. Quaint programs like Creeper have given way to sophisticated software and techniques that support various malicious ends. Let’s take a quick look at some of today’s common threats:

• Malware is malicious software made to harm endpoints, networks, and/or data. This includes viruses, worms, trojans, ransomware, spyware, adware, and more.
• Ransomware attacks block access to data and files, usually by encrypting them, until the victim pays the attacker a ransom. A subtype, double extortion ransomware, gives attackers more leverage by stealing the data in addition to blocking the victim’s access.
• Denial of service (DoS) attacks disrupt service by sending the targeted network or server a constant flood of traffic, such as fraudulent requests, to overwhelm the system and prevent it from processing legitimate traffic.
• Phishing attacks deceive targets with fraudulent interactions and social engineering, often via email or social media, to trick them into divulging private or sensitive information, such as passwords or credit card numbers.

There are plenty of other types of attacks, and as cloud technology and the internet of things (IoT) continue to evolve and change shape, threats do the same. In short, when a new attack surface appears, it’s never long before it becomes a target. What’s more, just as cybersecurity companies continue to innovate counter-threat technology, bad actors are devising new ways to infiltrate targets without being detected.

Sources of Cyberthreats

Where a threat originates from depends on the nature of the victim organization, the kinds of data it deals with, and the attacker’s motives. For instance:

• Terrorists, hacktivists, and malicious nation-state actors tend to target government agencies or critical infrastructure providers to destabilize or disrupt their operations.
• Threat actor groups or individual hackers, largely driven by profit, may target any organization that holds valuable data, such as payment information, personally identifiable information (PII), protected health information (PHI), or intellectual property.
• Malicious insiders or corporate espionage agents may be driven by various motives, such as profit or revenge, and can have similarly varied goals such as theft or disruption.