An Investigation into the Impact Covid-19 Has Had on the Cyber Threat Landscape and Remote Working for UK Organizations

Abstract

With Covid-19 creating an unexpected worldwide situation that has brought about changes to the way that people have had to go about their everyday lives, organizations have also had to change their business practices to comply with social distancing guidance, meaning the adoption of remote work solutions where possible. There has also been an observed increase in Cyber attacks, that risk taking advantage of these sudden changes. This paper analyzes the effect of Covid-19 on remote working practices and the Cybersecurity threat landscape. The research has shown an indication that Cybercriminals and Advanced Persistent Threat actors have adapted common attacks such as phishing and teleconferencing vulnerabilities, to take advantage of the confusion and fear surrounding Covid-19. There is a suggestion that the larger or more technically focused organizations within the UK were best prepared and least affected by the move to remote work yet also had a general lack of policies and plans in the event of pandemics and natural disasters that might affect security operations. Based on these observations, it is recommended that organizations collaborate more and aim to explore the possibility of creating regional cyber first responder groups to help organizations in future situations like Covid-19. It can also be recommended that organizations introduce more tailored cyber security awareness training based around threats of remote working. Also to introduce pandemic related policies and plans into business continuity strategies, as standard. This should also contain plans covering who is responsible for what action or roles in an emergency and what to do if security teams are reduced in size.

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