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Cybersecurity Awareness

Articles on cybersecurity awareness cover the foundational knowledge individuals and organizations need to recognize and respond to digital threats. Topics include safe browsing habits, password hygiene, social engineering tactics, and building a security-first culture across teams.

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Whaling Attack

Whaling Attack Cybersecurity: How Execs Get Targeted

The CEO Who Wired $17 Million to a Criminal In 2016, an executive at Austrian aerospace parts manufacturer FACC received what appeared to be a routine email from the company's CEO. The message instructed a wire transfer of approximately €42 million — roughly $47 million — to accounts controlled by

Carl B. Johnson Apr 15, 2021 7 min read
Ransomware Attack Prevention

Ransomware Attack Prevention: A Practical Guide

The Attack That Shut Down a Pipeline — and a Wake-Up Call for Everyone In February 2020, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) published an alert after a ransomware attack forced a natural gas compression facility to shut down for two full days. The threat actor got in through a

Carl B. Johnson Mar 31, 2021 6 min read
Ransomware

What Is Ransomware? A Practical Defense Guide for 2021

In February 2021, Kia Motors America was hit with a ransomware attack reportedly demanding $20 million in Bitcoin. Customers couldn't access dealer portals. Internal systems went dark. The company spent days scrambling to restore operations. This wasn't an isolated event — it was the latest in a

Carl B. Johnson Mar 31, 2021 6 min read
Ransomware Prevention

How to Prevent Ransomware: A Practical Defense Guide

The Attack That Cost a Pipeline — and a Country's Fuel Supply In May 2021, Colonial Pipeline shut down 5,500 miles of fuel infrastructure after a ransomware attack crippled its operations. Millions of Americans panic-bought gasoline. The company paid $4.4 million in Bitcoin to the DarkSide threat

Carl B. Johnson Mar 12, 2021 7 min read
Ransomware Recovery

Ransomware Recovery Steps: A Practical Playbook

The Colonial Pipeline Wasn't the Wake-Up Call — Your Last Backup Test Was In February 2021, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued renewed guidance on ransomware after a string of attacks against hospitals, schools, and local governments. The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center reported that

Carl B. Johnson Mar 12, 2021 7 min read
Ransomware Examples

Ransomware Examples: What 2020-2021 Attacks Teach Us

The Ransomware Epidemic Is Already Here When someone searches for ransomware examples — whether they're typing "2026" or any other year — they're really asking one question: what does a real ransomware attack look like, and how do I stop it from happening to me? I&

Carl B. Johnson Mar 12, 2021 6 min read
Ransomware Protection Tips

Ransomware Protection Tips That Actually Work in 2021

A Hospital Paid $17 Million. Your Organization Could Be Next. In September 2020, Universal Health Services got hit with Ryuk ransomware across 400 facilities. The damage? An estimated $67 million in recovery costs and lost revenue. A few months earlier, Garmin paid a reported $10 million ransom to get its

Carl B. Johnson Feb 24, 2021 7 min read
Data Breach Prevention

Data Breach Prevention: 9 Steps That Actually Work

In December 2020, SolarWinds disclosed that threat actors had compromised its Orion software platform, ultimately breaching at least nine U.S. federal agencies and over 100 private companies. The attack went undetected for months. It wasn't a zero-day exploit that got them in — it was a compromised build

Carl B. Johnson Feb 24, 2021 7 min read
Data Breach

What Causes a Data Breach: 7 Real Threats in 2021

In July 2020, Twitter disclosed that attackers had compromised 130 high-profile accounts — including those of Barack Obama, Elon Musk, and Apple — through a social engineering attack targeting employees with access to internal tools. The breach didn't involve some exotic zero-day exploit. It started with phone calls to Twitter

Carl B. Johnson Jan 20, 2021 7 min read