The hacking group LulzSec has earned its faire share of headlines. Claiming responsibility for attacks as small as revealing someone’s personal information, to accessing high-profile and secure government and commercial databases, the name certainly evokes concern – if not fear – among security experts.
Over the weekend, Jeremy Hammond, who was responsible for leaking emails from corporate intelligence group Stratfor, was sentenced to jail – and received the maximum 10 year term.
He isn’t the first. Others, including LulzSec leader “Sabu” – Hector Xavier Monsegur – have either been jailed or await sentencing.
But while the court’s sentencing provides some relief for those who have been hit hard by security attacks, they also represent a key warning: these attacks will continue. Research from security researchers including McAfee and AVG show Australian businesses are continuously attacked by hackers. While hacking groups are often out to make a political point, for others it’s far more practical: to access data than can lead to financial gain.
The fact hackers are being sentenced might provide some businesses with relief, but this isn’t a problem which will go away. The prospect of facing digital attacks is one businesses – both large and small – now have to deal with every day.
Digital foresight goes a long way
In the United States, reforms to the nation’s healthcare system have been underway since President Barack Obama passed the Affordable Care Act in 2010. But last month, a key point in that plan hit a bump when a website designed to connect people to cheap insurance didn’t work as planned. For weeks now, the website has been facing errors keeping people from signing up.
This issue, combined with various other problems, forced Obama to make an announcement, (The Washington Post), over the weekend delaying some aspects of the legislation for another year.
The issue highlights a problem even among private businesses – a lack of testing. Although the Healthcare.gov website was being put together by an efficient time, a lack of planning or testing procedures meant the rollout of the site itself hit roadblock after roadblock.
Plenty of smaller endeavours face the same issues. Last year during the November selling craze, the Australian Click Frenzy website was unprepared for the huge amount of traffic assaulting its servers.
The problems in the United States over Healthcare.gov have eventually spilled over into other issues and have contributed to decisions that may not have otherwise be made. If nothing else, the incident suggests why it’s so important for businesses working in the digital era to remain adept at spotting problems before they actually arrive.
Keeping up with the pace of change
The software and hardware industries were given a jolt earlier this year when Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer said he would resign from his post at the company in order to issue in a new era of change.
An interview at the Wall Street Journal reveals how potent that change may be. He describes to the publication a discussion with board members in which he was told his plan to recharge the company was too slow.
“Maybe I’m an emblem of an old era, and I have to move on,” he told the publication. “As much as I love everything about what I’m doing,” he says, “the best way for Microsoft to enter a new era is a new leader who will accelerate change.”
One of the hardest and most gruelling aspects of surviving in a digital economy is keeping up with the pace of change. While Microsoft controlled the software industry in the 1990s, the revival of Apple and Google have made life harder for the company.
Digital change is an ongoing effort. Businesses wanting to compete in this environment must be willing to keep up with the rapid pace of development, or simply risk being left behind.
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