Cyberattacks are out of control.
Over the last few weeks, the U.S. State Department was hit with a cyberattack.
According to Sam Curry at Cybereason, as quoted by Infosecurity-Magazine.com, “The recent cyber-attack against the U.S. State Department is a reminder that anyone and everyone can be hit and will be hit. Today, it is a matter of how quickly threats are discovered and how quickly they are stopped. Overall, the State Department’s networks are big, and they are presumably getting attacked by nation-states, terrorists and other adversaries on a daily basis.”
Even major companies are getting hit.
T-Mobile for example said hackers stole data of about 50 million people. Colonial Pipeline was taken down by a remote account with a compromised virtual private network password.
The next targets — schools and universities are bracing for attacks.
According to Today.com, “There has been a nearly 30 percent increase in cyberattacks against schools in just the first half of the year.” In addition, according to The Hill, “Both K-12 schools and colleges have been increasingly subjected to ransomware attacks, class interruptions on virtual learning platforms, phishing emails and identity theft, further disrupting an already challenging learning environment.”
Worse, according to FireEye, as noted by Cybersecurity Insiders, about 29% of organizations haven’t even bothered to test their cyber defenses in over a year. Considering the constant threat, and the cost of cyberattacks, that shouldn’t be.
In short, it’s gotten way out of hand.
For companies, governments, and schools to be so poorly prepared after years of warnings has become unacceptable. For investors, it’s creating a good deal of upside for related stocks.
Global X Cybersecurity ETF (BUG)
“The Global X Cybersecurity ETF (BUG) seeks to invest in companies that stand to potentially benefit from the increased adoption of cybersecurity technology, such as those whose principal business is in the development and management of security protocols preventing intrusion and attacks to systems, networks, applications, computers, and mobile devices,” says Global X.
iShares Cybersecurity and Tech ETF (IHAK)
According to iShares, “The iShares Cybersecurity and Tech ETF seeks to track the investment results of an index composed of developed and emerging market companies involved in cyber security and technology, including cyber security hardware, software, products, and services.”