Targeted Cyber Attacks: Multi-staged Attacks Driven by Exploits and Malware

Cyber-crime increasingly impacts both the online and offline world, and targeted attacks play a significant role in disrupting services in both. Targeted attacks are those that are aimed at a particular individual, group, or type of site or service. Unlike worms and viruses that usually attack indiscriminately, targeted attacks involve intelligence-gathering and planning to a degree that drastically changes its profile.

Individuals, corporations, and even governments are facing new threats from targeted attacks. Targeted Cyber Attacks examines real-world examples of directed attacks and provides insight into what techniques and resources are used to stage these attacks so that you can counter them more effectively.

1. Introduction 2. Intelligence Gathering 3. Infecting the Target 4. System Exploitation 5. Data Exfiltration Mechanisms 6. Maintaining Control and Lateral Movement 7. Why are Targeted Cyber Attacks Easy to Conduct? 8. Challenges and Countermeasures 9. Conclusion