At the beginning of December, machine manufacturer KraussMaffei announced an attack on the Munich-based company's IT system. A Trojan had attacked computers and encrypted stored documents, resulting in reduced production. This shows that not only IT companies are the target of hackers. Rather, all industries are in danger of such attacks.
Malware is quickly installed
Already a single malicious mail, a mistakenly accessed website or the installation of an unknown programme can completely compromise a company's infrastructure. Viruses often replicate to other computers connected to the network within a few moments. A chain reaction then develops. More and more devices will get the code of the malware installed on them, which can then cause trouble.
These programmes operate in a variety of ways. At the latest in 2017, blackmail Trojans, also known as ransomware, achieved sad fame. The "WannaCry" programme installed itself on hundreds of thousands of computers - regardless of whether they were private machines or company computers. This cyber-attack was aimed at encrypting files on the hard drive. Users could no longer work with their computers. In order to gain access again, several hundred Euros should be transferred to the attacker by means of the crypto currency Bitcoin. KraussMaffei was probably hit by a similar malicious programme.
Especially in the corporate environment, malicious programmes, which act in the background all the time, are more frequently used. Such software is generally referred to as spyware. Main field of application: Industrial or competitive espionage. The user does not even notice that another programme is running in the background. Keyloggers that send keyboard entries to third parties - including user names, passwords and possibly confidential texts - were popular not too long ago. Today, programmes are used that specifically upload files or transmit screen content. Internal information such as customer data, account details and project plans are quickly lost.