The most common types of cyber-attacks are phishing attacks, malware/ransomware attacks, denial of service attacks, and man-in-the-middle attacks.
Phishing attacks – Phishing is when a hacker tries to obtain login and other personal information from a user by sending an email that looks like it’s coming from a reputable source. The email will contain a link that takes the user to a site designed to capture the recipient’s username and password.
Malware/Ransomware – Malware and Ransomware are types of software viruses that attack a user’s computer and steal personal information or lock-out the user completely until they agree to pay a ransom.
Denial of Service – DOS attacks occur when hackers flood a website or network with traffic in an effort to weaken the performance or shut it down altogether.
Man-in-the-middle – MITM attacks occur when a hacker gains access to a network during communications between a client and a host computer. The hacker uses a dummy IP address to pretend to be the user’s bank or other financial institution so they can hijack their login information and steal money from the account.