Hospitals are increasingly becoming victims of cyberattacks as the workforce sees major changes amid the pandemic.
Here are 10 cyberattack terms to know and watch out for to avoid data breaches:
1. Business email compromise (BEC): Cybercriminals send an email pretending to be a well-known source like a manager or vendor, according to the FBI. They often ask victims to purchase gift cards and send them the numbers on the card or change the direct deposit routing number to a new account.
2. Password spray attack: Adversaries acquire a large list of accounts and try many common passwords until they get a hit, according to Microsoft.
3. Brute force attack: Cybercriminals conduct research to go after one user, stalking social media and personal information, according to Microsoft. They try variants of this information until they are able to guess the password.
4. Pharming: Users can correctly type in a web address, according to AARP, but will be routed to an identical website with the goal of gathering personal information.
5. Keystroke logger: A keystroke logger is a program that tracks sequences in keys touched on a keyboard to capture passwords, according to AARP.
6. Trojans: Trojans are harmful software that comes attached to useful programs and hides in those programs, according to AARP. This software forms a backdoor for cybercriminals but they don't self-replicate like other viruses.
7. Malware: Malware short for malicious software, according to the FBI. It describes software intended to damage a computer system through malicious code to perform unauthorized functions to compromise operations in a system.
8. Ransomware: Ransomware is a type of malware that limits or prevents a user's access to their system until a ransom or fee is paid, according to AARP.
9. Phishing: Phishing when cybercriminals send large numbers of authentic-looking emails — like a bank or government agency — to trick users into sending personal information, according to AARP.
10. Spear phishing: This tactic is similar to phishing, but hackers target an individual user to get information using authentic-looking emails, according to the FBI.