University of Advancing Technology's Official Technology Blog

The top information security trends of 2021 will be industrial control systems in relation to critical infrastructure and supply chain security. We know that India suffered a targeted cyber attack of their Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plan in 2019 and Pakistan suffered a Netwalker ransomware attack on their power supplier K-Electric. The famous Solar Winds attack is a good representation of failed supply chain security.

Increased tensions globally will continue to fan the flames of cyber warfare. It can be very difficult to directly target a government or military entity and such attacks provide a tremendous risk of retaliation. The best alternative is to simply feign ignorance and blame criminal actors while using tools such as ransomware to disrupt the electrical grid or to destroy manufacturing capabilities of your target.

I do not have a crystal ball and I cannot see into the future, but I can infer from previous attacks that have been found to be successful that we will see attackers continue to target the supply chain of manufacturers as well as software developers and critical infrastructure. These attacks work and they get results and that is the most important aspect of conducting an attack. Any individual who may be concerned about cyber attacks can enhance their security by employing two tools. The first tool is a Network Intrusion Detection System, Snort is a good choice. This allows you to monitor your network for abnormal activity but does require some level of technical acumen and you must also figure out what an appropriate baseline looks like.

The second set of tools you can use are known as Source Code Analysis tools. There are many different tools designed for source code analysis and it will require that you know what languages you are using to find the right one. Individuals who do web development using PHP might be well served by the tool PHPStan. Regardless of the tool you choose, the concepts are the same. You want a tool that will assist you in verifying the integrity and quality of your code while also looking for common mistakes.

Interested in cyber security? UAT offers a variety of degree choices, from associate to master degree options. Review the programs available at https://www.uat.edu/cyber-security-degrees, and contact admissions@uat.edu to get started!