Intelligent CISO Issue 07 | Page 6

news GCCPOL and Kaspersky Lab collaborate to elevate cybersecurity awareness CCPOL, the organisation which serves as a law enforcement hub for the six countries of the GCC, has hosted a cybersecurity session in collaboration with Kaspersky Lab. G The collaboration has created a platform for the exchanging of information and expertise between the two organisations about the latest cyberthreats facing the GCC and wider region. The objectives of this collaboration were to demonstrate best practices in cyberspace, highlight the importance of securing a workplace environment and illustrate how a security incident can impact organisations. Commenting on the GCCPOL collaboration, Amir Kanaan, Managing Director – META, Kaspersky Lab, said: “At Kaspersky Lab, we believe that well-informed staff is the most important and effective line of defence, although the lack of awareness still remains a worrying reality. According to a recent study we conducted with B2B International, only 18% of respondents in the META region are fully aware of the IT security policies and guidelines set in their workplace. Security consciousness and education are essential pillars in combating cybercrime and we are pleased to collaborate with GCCPOL to share expertise and unique experiences.” 6 ESET RESEARCHERS DISCOVER FIRST UEFI ROOTKIT DETECTED IN CYBERATTACK SET researchers have discovered a cyberattack that used a UEFI rootkit to establish a presence on the victims’ computers. E Dubbed LoJax by ESET, this rootkit was part of a campaign run by the infamous Sednit group against several high-profile targets in Central and Eastern Europe and is the first-ever publicly known attack of this kind. UEFI rootkits are extremely dangerous formidable tools for the launch of cyberattacks. They serve as a key to the whole computer, are hard to detect and able to survive cybersecurity measures such as reinstallation of the operating system or even a hard disk replacement. ESET’s endpoint security solutions have a dedicated layer of protection, ESET UEFI Scanner, designed to detect malicious components in a PC’s firmware. “Thanks to the ESET UEFI Scanner, both our consumer and business customers are in a good position to spot such attacks and defend themselves against them,” added Juraj Malcho, Chief Technology Officer at ESET. ESET’s analysis of the Sednit campaign that uses the first-ever in-the-wild UEFI rootkit is described in detail in the LoJax: First UEFI rootkit found in the wild, courtesy of the Sednit group whitepaper. Issue 07 | www.intelligentciso.com