What Is A Cyberattack?

Date First Published: 10th June 2023

Topic: Cybersecurity

Subtopic: Threats To Data, Systems & Information

Computer Terms & Definitions

Difficulty: Easy

Difficulty Level: 3/10

CONTENTS

Examples Of Cyberattacks
Methods Of Launching Cyberattacks

Learn about what a cyberattack in this article.

A cyberattack is an intentional attempt to disrupt or harm a computer system or network. Cyberattacks are performed by cybercriminals with malicious intent to do damage and cause havoc, like gaining unauthorised access to a system or network, stealing, corrupting, or wiping out data, bringing networks or servers down, and more.

Cybercriminals use all sorts of methods to launch cyberattacks, including exploiting vulnerabilities in systems and networks and using social engineering tactics to get users to install malware, like spyware and ransomware. They are often launched for financial gain, revenge, and disruption.

Examples Of Cyberattacks

Over the years, cyberattacks have become more sophisticated and dangerous due to the advances in technology. Below are 12 examples of cyberattacks:

DDoS attack - Where an attacker tries to flood a server or network with so much malicious traffic that it cannot operate.
Ransomware - A type of malware that blocks access to a computer system or files until a sum of money is paid. Ransomware may encrypt the user's personal files so that they are inaccessible or even completely lock them out of their computer.
Spyware - A type of malware that is designed to secretly monitor the victim's activity, gather information about them, and send it to a third party without their permission.
MITM attack - A type of cyberattack where an attacker intercepts communications between the user and server and positions themselves in between the two parties transferring data. This allows the attacker to eavesdrop in order to steal sensitive information.
Pharming - The practice of redirecting a user to a fake website that mimics the appearance of a legitimate one to collect personal information, like usernames, passwords, and bank details.
Brute-force attack - A type of cyberattack where the attacker repeatedly submits large numbers of passwords in the hope of discovering the correct password.
SQL injection - A web-based vulnerability that allows an attacker to insert malicious code into SQL servers and interfere with the queries made to a database to get the server to reveal sensitive information.
Drive-by download - A web-based vulnerability which unknowingly downloads and installs things on a computer without the user's permission or knowledge. Drive-by downloads are often designed to exploit vulnerabilities in web browsers, applications, and operating systems.
Zero-day attack - A type of cyberattack that involves attackers using a zero-day exploit to harm a system affected by the vulnerability. takes They take advantage of a zero-day vulnerability that has no fix in place and the zero-day exploit is the method attackers use to attack systems.
Phishing - The practice of impersonating trusted companies to steal sensitive information from users. Phishing usually comes in the form of email, where the attacker makes the message look like it has come from a legitimate company and wants the user to click on a link to a phishing site to trick them into giving their personal information away.
Watering hole attack - A type of cyberattack where the attacker identifies websites that are commonly visited by members of an organisation and infects them with malware to infect the computers in the organisation.
Email bomb - A type of cyberattack where the attacker sends a large number of email messages to one or more email addresses to flood the mailboxes or overwhelm the mail servers so that they become unresponsive as a way of performing a DDoS attack.

Methods Of Launching Cyberattacks

There are two main methods of launching cyberattacks, which include:

Untargeted cyberattack - The attacker is not targeting a specific individual or organisation. The attacker is looking to exploit vulnerabilities in software code or use social engineering tactics to target large numbers of people in general. An example of an untargeted attack is sending a copy of a phishing email to hundreds of users at once.
Targeted cyberattack - Attackers are launching a cyberattack against a specific individual or organisation. An example of this is launching a DDoS attack against a specific web server to bring it down or make it unresponsive. Launching a spear phishing attack against an individual, who the attacker already knows some information about and including those details in the email is another example of a targeted cyberattack.