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Cybercriminals Target Linux-Based Systems With Ransomware and Cryptojacking Attacks

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VMware SASE Launched by BT as a Managed Service

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Securing the Future: 7 Cybersecurity Predictions for 2022

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New Research from VMware Reveals Deepening Divide Between Developer and Security Teams

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GovCon Wire | Zero Trust Should Be Part of Agencies&#8217; Holistic Security Strategy

GovCon Wire: Government Security Strategy Zero Trust

VMware Research Reveals Agencies are Navigating Compliance, Security and Upskilling Employees Amid Cloud Adoption

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Today, at the <a href="https://upgather.com/vmware/public-sector-innovation-summit/">Public Sector Innovation Summit</a>, VMware announced findings from a study on how government agencies are scaling use of multi-cloud environments for mission success. The study, titled “<a href="https://www.vmware.com/learn/1380503_REG.html?src=wb_624ed0c315228&cid=7012H000001KaLSQA0">Multi-cloud Is The New Frontier Of Government IT</a>," conducted by Forrester Consulting, found while the move to multi-cloud is a priority, agencies face challenges supporting growing cloud environments, including compliance standards, data security and upskilling employees.

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A ‘Cloud‑Smart’ Approach for the Public Sector

The survey captures responses from more than 500 agency leaders and IT decision-makers at federal, state, and local governments in the United States and Canada and discovered that while agencies are accelerating cloud adoption, multi-cloud environments are far more diverse, complex, and distributed than anything organizations have managed in the past. This can create barriers or force trade-offs between moving fast and managing risk. The challenge lies in finding the right tools and platforms to meet agency demands and keep data and processes safe and compliant. The study found when selecting cloud platform providers, the top priorities for agencies were: 

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Talent Paired with Technology

To achieve a faster and smarter path to multi-cloud, agencies are focused on scaling security and upskilling employees in tandem with cloud adoption. More than half of agencies (57%) expressed concern about data security as they look to increase cloud adoption and 65% of agencies have plans to increase their investment in professional development for their developers.

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“Multi-cloud is the new reality for government agencies but as they increase cloud investments, they also need to lay the technical and cultural foundation,” said Jennifer Chronis, vice president, public sector, VMware. “VMware is uniquely positioned to meet our customers wherever they are on their digital transformation journeys and help them take full advantage of multiple clouds. Across the public sector, we are giving our customers the power to accelerate innovation and improve resiliency on a trusted digital foundation.” (<a href="https://twitter.com/jenniferchronis">Twitter</a>,<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-chronis-4a11745/"> LinkedIn</a>)

The full study, complete with recommendations for a ‘cloud-smart’ approach to the multi-cloud era can be downloaded <a href="https://www.vmware.com/learn/1380503_REG.html?src=wb_624ed0c315228&cid=7012H000001KaLSQA0">here</a>.

Learn more at the Public Sector Innovation Summit

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VMware’s Public Sector Innovation Summit brings together leading technologists from the private sector, along with IT leaders and experts from federal, state, and local government. This year’s theme, “A Holistic Multi-Cloud for Mission Success,” explores how agencies can reimagine mission success innovating across clouds.

The summit will take place at the Ritz Carlton Pentagon City in Arlington, Virginia, from 8:30 a.m. – 1:15 p.m. ET. It will also be live streamed. To learn more or to register to attend, please visit: <a href="https://upgather.com/vmware/public-sector-innovation-summit/">Public Sector Innovation Summit 2022</a>.

To learn more about VMware is helping the public sector innovate, please visit:

Methodology

VMware commissioned a survey, undertaken by an independent research organization, Forrester Consulting, in March 2022. 501 agency leaders and IT decision-makers at federal, state, and local governments were surveyed on cloud practices including strategy, process, and solutions. The research was conducted in the United States and Canada.

This article may contain hyperlinks to non-VMware websites that are created and maintained by third parties who are solely responsible for the content on such websites.

Samantha Mayowa, VMware Global Communications, <a href="mailto:smayowa@vmware.com">smayowa@vmware.com</a>

Today, at the Public Sector Innovation Summit, VMware announced findings from a study on how government agencies are scaling use of multi-cloud environments for mission success.

Public Sector Innovation Summit 2022

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Pubic Sector Innovation Summit

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The recent Presidential mandates and legislation aimed at strengthening public sector digital defenses are much needed reinforcements to ongoing challenges. Cybercrime is predicted to cost the world $10.5 trillion annually by 20251, up from $6 trillion in 2021. Added to this are the stressors caused by the global pandemic — requiring agencies to transition to remote workforces while still serving constituents. And while digital transformation, including cloud adoption, has been on the “to do” list for quite some time, the pandemic accelerated the timeline as agencies looked to modernize their infrastructure and build resilience.

With these forces in mind, VMware’s public sector experts weighed in on what should be at the top of mind for agencies this year.

The Journey to Zero Trust Cybersecurity

December’s discovery of the<a href="https://news.vmware.com/security/vmware-responds-to-log4j-vulnerability"> Log4j vulnerability</a> — which allowed hackers to run any code on vulnerable machines or hack into any application directly using the open-source Log4j framework — revealed the fragility of public and private digital architectures. Add to this, mainstream ransomware attacks targeting organizations in critical industries like Colonial Pipeline, JBS Foods and Kaseya made it starkly evident zero trust security needs to be a priority.

“Zero trust and supply chain risk management are at the top of the list,” says Jeremiah Sanders, Senior Federal Strategist at VMware. Zero Trust is the next-generation model for securely delivering IT services and solutions anywhere in the world, on any device or system. It’s not a single product but a security operations framework based on the notion of never trusting and always verifying.

Keith Nakasone, Federal Strategist at VMware added “Cybersecurity must be looked at holistically. It must become a part of the agency culture to include the people, process, and technology.”

Daniel Kent, Chief Architect, Public Sector, VMware notes that effective cybersecurity also requires agencies to practice good cyber hygiene. “IT security can’t be an afterthought, especially as we move to a devOps model, where analytics and automation will be critical to cybersecurity effectiveness,” he says.

The journey to Zero Trust security must be prioritized — and it’s now a<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/05/12/executive-order-on-improving-the-nations-cybersecurity/"> Presidential mandate</a>. Agencies need  a measured, phased approach to achieve this goal. For more information on cybersecurity mandates and adopting a Zero Trust framework, visit:<a href="https://techzone.vmware.com/blog/incorporating-vmware-zero-trust-presidential-executive-order"> Incorporating VMware Zero-Trust for the Presidential Executive Order</a>.

The Power of Public and Private Partnership

Developing and strengthening the ecosystem of public-private engagement, including the<a href="https://blogs.vmware.com/security/2021/11/biden-administration-directs-federal-agencies-to-patch-known-vulnerabilities.html"> Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC)</a> and the<a href="https://news.vmware.com/releases/vmware-white-house-summit-open-source-software-security"> White House Open Source Software Security Summit</a>, is a key building block for technological and economic progress. Similarly, VMware is collaborating with NIST’s National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) Zero Trust Cybersecurity Architecture Consortium to develop practical, interoperable cybersecurity approaches that address the real-world needs of the public sector’s complex IT ecosystem. These partnerships build trust and resiliency as agencies work towards modernizing critical infrastructure.

In December, President Joe Biden signed into law the National Defense Authorization Act of 2022, which codified an approach to cybersecurity that depends on the decisions of private-sector entities to protect the bulk of the nation’s critical infrastructure. This is yet another initiative that brings public and private worlds together to achieve a ‘whole of nation’ approach to combating cybersecurity threats.

“The best way to achieve the goals set by mandates is to work with the private sector — they can be trusted advisors,” says Nakasone.

Leveraging the power of public-private partnerships should be a priority for agencies this year as they look to keep up with the pace of legislation and innovation.

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A ‘Cloud-Smart’ Approach for the Multi-Cloud Era

The average organization in the private sector runs<a href="https://news.vmware.com/releases/vmworld-2021-cross-cloud-services"> about 500 apps</a>2 to drive their business, and those apps are distributed across clouds. Kent points out that the same forces will be true in the public sector as agencies look to the cloud and apps to digitize parts of their organizations.

It’s no longer about a ‘cloud first’ approach—it’s about being ‘cloud smart.’ A multi-cloud approach increases app velocity and innovation and will empower agencies to become much more agile and resilient. This year, agencies should focus on building a cloud strategy that provides freedom and control. The reality is across federal, state and local agencies are at different points in their digital transformation journeys. It will be important they have the freedom to choose the ’right’ cloud based on their strategic business goals. With a cloud-agnostic approach, agencies have the power to accelerate innovation and control their destiny in the multi-cloud era.

Nakasone noted, “the pandemic has created an opportunity for the public sector to consider alternative solutions to ensure that work can continue from any cloud, any application, and any device. Agencies will need to prioritize understanding cloud solutions moving forward to build a strategy that works for their organization.”

Upskilling and Reskilling Employees

With accelerated digital transformation initiatives, agencies are quickly realizing that new technologies require new employee skill sets. As agencies prioritize innovation, they must also prioritize upskilling and reskilling employees as part of the transformation.

“You can have the understanding of what you need — but not have access to talent,” Sanders says. As a result, agencies will need to focus on reskilling existing talent while also expanding their talent pool. Sanders points out that agencies now have access to a broader talent pool as the workforce continues with remote and distributed models, and there is further opportunity to ensure successful agency digital transformation by leveraging digital workforce upskilling partners like VMware to, “enable a new way of work.” 

To learn how VMware is working with the public sector around these priorities, visit:

With increased focus on digital transformation across the public sector, VMware’s experts discuss four innovation priorities across cybersecurity, partnerships, cloud adoption and employees.

Innovating for the Future: 4 Public Sector Priorities for 2022

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VMware report finds more than half of Cobalt Strike users are using the tool illicitly

PALO ALTO, Calif. – As the most common cloud operating system, Linux is a core part of digital infrastructure and is quickly becoming an attacker’s ticket into a multi-cloud environment. Current malware countermeasures are mostly focused on addressing Windows-based threats, leaving many public and private cloud deployments vulnerable to attacks that target Linux-based workloads.

Today, VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW) <a href="https://www.vmware.com/resources/security/exposing-malware-in-multi-cloud.html?utm_source=pr&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=linux-threat-report&utm_term=none&utm_content=none">released</a> a threat report titled “Exposing Malware in Linux-based Multi-Cloud Environments.”(1) Key findings that detail how cybercriminals are using malware to target Linux-based operating systems include:

“Cybercriminals are dramatically expanding their scope and adding malware that targets Linux-based operating systems to their attack toolkit in order to maximize their impact with as little effort as possible,” said Giovanni Vigna, senior director of threat intelligence at VMware. “Rather than infecting an endpoint and then navigating to a higher value target, cybercriminals have discovered that compromising a single server can deliver the massive payoff and access they’re looking for. Attackers view both public and private clouds as high-value targets due to the access they provide to critical infrastructure services and confidential data. Unfortunately, current malware countermeasures are mostly focused on addressing Windows-based threats, leaving many public and private cloud deployments vulnerable to attacks on Linux-based operating systems.”

As malware targeting Linux-based operating systems increases in both volume and complexity amid a rapidly changing threat landscape, organizations must place a greater priority on threat detection. In this report, the VMware Threat Analysis Unit (TAU) analyzed the threats to Linux-based operating systems in multi-cloud environments: ransomware, cryptominers, and remote access tools.

Ransomware Targets the Cloud to Inflict Maximum Damage

As one of the <a href="https://www.carbonblack.com/resources/global-security-insights-report-2021-intelligence-from-the-global-cybersecurity-landscape/?lp=1&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=social-organic&utm_term=none&utm_content=report">leading breach</a> causes for organizations, a successful ransomware attack on a cloud environment can have devastating consequences.(2) Ransomware attacks against cloud deployments are targeted, and are often combined with data exfiltration, implementing a double-extortion scheme that improves the odds of success. A new development shows that ransomware is evolving to target Linux host images used to spin workloads in virtualized environments. Attackers are now looking for the most valuable assets in cloud environments to inflict the maximum amount of damage to the target. Examples include the Defray777 ransomware family, which encrypted host images on ESXi servers, and the DarkSide ransomware family, which crippled Colonial Pipeline’s networks and caused a nationwide gasoline shortage in the U.S.

Cryptojacking Attacks Use XMRig to Mine Monero

Cybercriminals looking for an instant monetary reward often target cryptocurrencies using one of two approaches. Cybercriminals either include wallet-stealing functionality in malware or they monetize stolen CPU cycles to successfully mine cryptocurrencies in an attack called cryptojacking. Most cryptojacking attacks focus on mining the Monero currency (or XMR) and VMware TAU discovered that 89 percent of cryptominers used XMRig-related libraries. For this reason, when XMRig-specific libraries and modules in Linux binaries are identified, it is likely evidence of malicious cryptomining behavior. VMware TAU also observed that defense evasion is the most commonly used technique by cryptominers. Unfortunately, because cryptojacking attacks do not completely disrupt the operations of cloud environments like ransomware, they are much more difficult to detect.

Cobalt Strike Is Attackers’ Remote Access Tool of Choice

In order to gain control and persist within an environment, attackers look to install an implant on a compromised system that gives them partial control of the machine. Malware, webshells, and Remote Access Tools (RATs) can all be implants used by attackers in a compromised system to allow for remote access. One of the primary implants used by attackers is Cobalt Strike, a commercial penetration testing and red team tool, and its recent variant of Linux-based Vermilion Strike. Since Cobalt Strike is such a ubiquitous threat on Windows, the expansion out to the Linux-based operating system demonstrates the desire of threat actors to use readily available tools that target as many platforms as possible.

VMware TAU discovered more than 14,000 active Cobalt Strike Team Servers on the Internet between February 2020 and November 2021. The total percentage of cracked and leaked Cobalt Strike customer IDs is 56 percent, meaning that more than half of Cobalt Strike users may be cybercriminals, or at least using Cobalt Strike illicitly. The fact that RATs like Cobalt Strike and Vermilion Strike have become a commodity tool for cybercriminals poses a significant threat to enterprises.

“Since we conducted our analysis, even more ransomware families were observed gravitating to malware targeting Linux-based systems, with the potential for additional attacks that could leverage the Log4j vulnerabilities,” said Brian Baskin, manager of threat research at VMware. “The findings in this report can be used to better understand the nature of this malware and mitigate the growing threat that ransomware, cryptomining, and RATs have on multi-cloud environments. As attacks targeting the cloud continue to evolve, organizations should adopt a Zero Trust approach to embed security throughout their infrastructure and systematically address the threat vectors that make up their attack surface.”

Download the full report <a href="https://www.vmware.com/resources/security/exposing-malware-in-multi-cloud.html?utm_source=pr&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=linux-threat-report&utm_term=none&utm_content=none">here</a>.

The VMware Threat Analysis Unit (TAU) helps protect customers from cyberattacks through innovation and world-class research. TAU is composed of malware analysts, reverse engineers, threat hunters, data scientists, and intelligence analysts at VMware. To understand how to detect and prevent attacks that bypass traditional, file-centric, prevention strategies, TAU focuses on techniques that were once the domain of advanced hackers and are now moving downstream into the commodity attack market. The team leverages real-time big data, event streaming processing, static, dynamic and behavioral analytics, and machine learning.

TAU applied a composition of static and dynamic techniques to characterize various families of malware observed on Linux-based systems based on a curated dataset of metadata associated with Linux binaries. All the samples in this dataset are public and therefore they can be easily accessed using VirusTotal or various websites of major Linux distributions. TAU collected more than 11,000 benign samples from several Linux distributions, namely, Ubuntu, Debian, Mint, Fedora, CentOS, and Kali. TAU then collected a dataset of samples for two classes of threats, namely ransomware and cryptominers. Finally, TAU collected a dataset of malicious ELF binaries from VirusTotal that were used as a test malicious dataset. TAU started collecting the dataset in June 2021 and concluded in November 2021.

VMware is a leading provider of multi-cloud services for all apps, enabling digital innovation with enterprise control. As a trusted foundation to accelerate innovation, VMware software gives businesses the flexibility and choice they need to build the future. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, VMware is committed to building a better future through the company’s 2030 Agenda. For more information, please visit <a href="http://www.vmware.com/company">www.vmware.com/company</a>.

Kerry Tuttle, VMware Global Communications, ktuttle<a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.carbonblack.com%2Fpress-releases%2Fvmware-releases-global-incident-response-threat-report-detailing-surge-in-sophisticated-cyberattacks-as-ecrime-groups-grow-more-powerful%2Fsmayowa%40vmware.com&esheet=52428830&newsitemid=20210513005727&lan=en-US&anchor=smayowa%40vmware.com&index=5&md5=1703d2fddc5b038b50c05f4ba6184693">@vmware.com</a>, (470) 247-1987

VMware Threat Analysis Unit (TAU) released a new threat report titled "Exposing Malware in Linux-based Multi-Cloud Environments."

Cybercriminals Target Linux-based Systems with Ransomware and Cryptojacking Attacks

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Cybercriminals Target Linux-Based Systems With Ransomware and Cryptojacking Attacks - VMware News and Stories

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PALO ALTO, Calif. -- VMware today announced an agreement with BT, a leading global communications services provider, to offer multinational customers more choice and flexibility in how they embrace a cloud-first approach to networking, security, and edge computing.

Under the terms of the agreement, BT will offer its customers VMware Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) as a global managed service, combining BT’s extensive networking capabilities and in-depth security expertise with VMware technology.

The launch of the BT-managed service builds on the strong partnership between the companies. BT already offers <a href="https://newsroom.bt.com/bt-launches-new-generation-of-software-defined-network-services-with-vmware/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">a managed service based on VMware SD-WAN</a>.

The new managed service will help customers accelerate their digital transformation by providing employees wherever they are with flexible, more secure, and reliable access to cloud-based applications and services deployed in public and private clouds, SaaS, or at the enterprise edge. It will support the adoption of the latest digital technologies and workstyles, including IoT and hybrid working.  

As part of the single-vendor ecosystem managed service, BT will provide full end-to-end support across networking and security, protecting access to applications and data across private, hybrid and multi-clouds. This will remove complexity for customers on adopting a full SASE approach and will be especially compelling for those looking to transform both networking and security operations.

VMware’s comprehensive cloud-delivered SASE solution brings together:

These capabilities are delivered as a service from a global network of over 150 points of presence (PoPs) deployed by VMware and its SASE service provider partners. BT will peer its network PoPs with VMware PoPs, so customers have an enhanced end user experience on the VMware platform.

The new BT-managed VMware SASE service will launch with features including URL filtering; in-line cloud access security broker (CASB) to protect user activity; content filtering to reduce attack surfaces; and content inspection to protect against malware attacks.

For customers looking to adopt hybrid workstyles, BT will provide VMware Secure Access. This zero-trust network access service allows only trusted devices and remote workers to access enterprise applications hosted on premises or in the cloud.

VMware and BT plan to work together to introduce new features to the managed service over the coming months.

Scott Cowling, Director, Software Defined Networks, BT, said, “Many organizations are deploying cloud networking with SD-WAN technology. SASE takes this approach to the next level with an architecture that enables delivery of networking, security, and edge compute services from the cloud. Launching our managed VMware SASE solution will help customers address networking and security challenges seamlessly as one.”

Craig Connors, vice president and general manager for VMware’s SASE business, said, “Leading service providers like BT have modernized their networks so they can deliver a new category of services to enterprise customers. SASE has emerged as the blueprint for modern networking and security, and we are pleased BT has selected VMware SASE to simplify their customers’ multi-cloud journey.”

VMware is a leading provider of multi-cloud services for all apps, enabling digital innovation with enterprise control. As a trusted foundation to accelerate innovation, VMware software gives businesses the flexibility and choice they need to build the future. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, VMware is committed to building a better future through the company’s 2030 Agenda. For more information, please visit <a href="http://www.vmware.com/company" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">www.vmware.com/company</a>.

VMware, VMware SD-WAN, VMware SASE and VMware Secure Access are registered trademarks or trademarks of VMware, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States and other jurisdictions.

This press release may contain hyperlinks to non-VMware websites that are created and maintained by third parties who are solely responsible for the content on such websites.

Angela Leaf, VMware Global Communications, Phone: +1 (860) 480-3367, <a href="mailto:aleaf@vmware.com">aleaf@vmware.com</a>

BT will offer its customers VMware SASE as a global managed service, combining BT’s extensive networking capabilities and in-depth security expertise with VMware technology. Learn more:

BT Launches VMware SASE As A Managed Service

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VMware SASE Launched by BT as a Managed Service - VMware News and Stories

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@BT_Global will offer its customers @VMwareSASE as a global managed service. Learn more:

The past year has thrust cybersecurity into the spotlight and created a renewed focus on evolving security strategies for both the private and public sector. This month, we witnessed the <a href="https://news.vmware.com/security/vmware-responds-to-log4j-vulnerability">critical Log4j vulnerability</a>, which further revealed the fragility of the world’s digital infrastructure. 2021 also saw cyberattacks like Colonial Pipeline, JBS and Kaseya make mainstream headlines and impact everyday consumers.

With cybercrime <a href="https://cybersecurityventures.com/cybercrime-damages-6-trillion-by-2021/">predicted</a> to cost the world $10.5 trillion annually by 2025, up from $6 trillion in 2021, defenders are in a race to stay one step ahead of attackers. We interviewed VMware security experts to get their take on predictions heading into the new year as the threat landscape continues to evolve. Here are the attack trends and emerging threats that should be top of mind for all organizations as we approach 2022.

The Log4j Zero Day will motivate organizations to rapidly adopt a Zero Trust approach.

"In 2021, we saw a massive proliferation of hacking tools, vulnerabilities and attack capabilities on the Dark Web,” said Eric O’Neill, national security strategist at VMware. “Defenders caught the highest number of Zero Days ever recorded, including closing out the year with the severe Apache Log4j vulnerability being exploited in the wild. As a response, 2022 will be the year of Zero Trust where organizations 'verify everything' versus trusting it’s safe. We’ve seen the Biden administration mandate a Zero Trust approach for federal agencies, and this will influence other industries to adopt a similar mindset with the assumption that they will eventually be breached. A Zero Trust approach will be a key element to fending off new attacks in 2022, while also mitigating the fallout from the Log4j vulnerability.”

Supply chain attacks have just gotten started.

“In July 2021, as the world was still reckoning with the devastating SolarWinds breach, the REvil ransomware gang exploited a Zero Day in Kaseya VSA to launch a supply-chain attack on its customers,” said Tom Kellermann, head of cybersecurity strategy at VMware. “Neither of these attacks occurred in a vacuum, meaning security teams must pay closer attention to the threat of island hopping. In 2022, we can expect that cybercrime cartels will continue to seek ways to hijack the digital transformation of organizations to deploy malicious code, infiltrate networks, and gain persistence in systems all over the world. Defenders and organizations will need to monitor networks and services vigilantly for suspicious activities and potential intrusions. Implementing practices associated with Zero Trust philosophy like microsegmentation, threat hunting, and advanced telemetry capabilities can help ensure organizations are not the gateway to or victim of a severely damaging attack.”

Insider threats pose a new challenge for organizations as the job market continues to shift.

"As the Great Resignation took shape, we saw growing challenges associated with insider threats,” said Rick McElroy, principal cybersecurity strategist at VMware. “The sheer number of employees leaving their jobs and potentially still having access to the network or proprietary data has created a headache for IT and security teams tasked with protecting the organization. Insider threats have become a new, distinct challenge for organizations as they try to balance employee turnover, employee onboarding and the use of non-sanctioned apps and platforms. In 2022, I expect we’ll see the number of insider threat incidents increase. Attackers will also start targeting employees to carry out their attacks or plant ransomware. As a result, we’ll see new protocols and guidelines established as organizations work to keep networks and sensitive data protected.”

In 2022, accelerated delivery of the benefits of 5G infrastructure will highlight IoT security needs.

"The pandemic made it abundantly clear how important 5G infrastructure is for rural areas in the U.S.,” said Karen Worstell, senior cybersecurity strategist at VMware. “The rollout of 5G will enable better access to healthcare, educational innovations, and public services. The Biden administration’s infrastructure bill, which includes provisions for broadband delivery and access, provides the industry with another nudge in the right direction to roll it out. As 5G service delivery expands, there will be a growing demand for IoT security and engineering to ensure that network complexity does not become yet another security liability. We must also focus on securing the far edge much like we handle the data center edge today -- this will put new demands on incident detection and response. Future-ready capabilities like EDR (endpoint detection and response) will need to evolve in order to keep an expanding service level and constituency safe.”

Linux-based operating systems will become a key target for cybercriminals.

"Linux powers the majority of cloud workloads and 78% of the websites on the Internet,” said Giovanni Vigna, senior director of threat intelligence at VMware. “Because of this, the Linux-based operating system has become the key driver behind nearly all digital transformation projects undertaken by organizations. This makes the security of Linux environments critical, as bad actors have increasingly started to target Linux-based hosts with various threats – from RATs and web shells to cryptominers to ransomware. Many organizations focus their attention on Windows-based malware and might find themselves blind to this emerging threat until it's too late.”

Adversaries will move laterally and exfiltrate data from unsecure multi-cloud environments.

"With multi-cloud environments on the rise, the attack surface will continue to expand,” said Chad Skipper, global security technologist at VMware. “This will invite greater proliferation of common ports and protocols that will be used by the adversary to move laterally and exfiltrate data once inside an organization’s network. In 2022, we will see the adversary focus their efforts on living and hiding within the common noise of an organization’s networks. Having visibility into this noise to identify the adversary will become more essential than ever before when defending today’s multi-cloud environments.”

Copycat cyberattacks on critical industries will disrupt human lives.

"We are seeing cybercriminals adopt a style of attacks that seek to cause disruption to human lives,” said James Alliband, senior security strategist at VMware. “The attack on Colonial Pipeline that triggered a fuel shortage along the U.S. East Coast, ranging to the attack on Ireland’s healthcare system that effectively shut down the entire country’s hospitals, are only the beginning. There will be copycats as we see bad actors target critical industries such as energy, healthcare and finance with the intent to cause panic while cashing in on a ransom payment. The results of a successful attack can be expensive and dangerous, ranging from cancelled hospital surgeries and rerouted ambulances to people waiting hours at a gas station for fuel. This will be an area that is of real interest to nation-states looking to cause disruption abroad.”

To recap the year’s biggest cybersecurity stories, check out these additional blogs:

For the latest threat research, join the <a href="https://community.carbonblack.com/">VMware Carbon Black User Exchange</a> where more than 30,000 security professionals share best practices and threat intelligence to improve security postures.

Here are the attack trends and emerging threats VMware security experts are tracking that should be top of mind for organizations in 2022.

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Security teams must rethink processes to aid innovation and customer experience

PALO ALTO, Calif.--VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW), a leading innovator in enterprise software, today announced findings from a study on the relationship between IT, security, and development teams as organizations adopt a Zero Trust security model. The study, titled “<a href="https://www.vmware.com/resources/security/bridging-the-developer-and-security-divide.html">Bridging the Developer and Security Divide</a>” and conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of VMware, found that security is still perceived as a barrier in organizations, with 52% of developers believing that security policies are stifling their innovation.

Forrester Consulting surveyed 1,475 IT and security leaders and discovered that only one in five (22%) developers strongly agree that they understand which security policies they are expected to comply with. Alarmingly, more than a quarter (27%) of the developers surveyed are not involved at all in security policy decisions, despite many of these greatly impacting their roles. Organizations where security and development teams have a positive relationship can accelerate the software development lifecycle five business days faster than those without – demonstrating how speed to market and competitive advantage are at stake here.

Seventy-three percent of respondents agreed that their senior leadership focuses more on strengthening the relationship between development and security than they did two years ago, but relationships are still strained. In fact, one in three (34%) decision makers reported their organizations’ teams are not effectively collaborating or taking strides to strengthen relationships between security and development teams. Lack of role definition for development teams, lack of communication between teams and competing priorities have major impacts on collaboration.

“Our research shows that security needs a perception shift,” said Rick McElroy, principal cybersecurity strategist, VMware. “Rather than be seen as the team that only swoops in to fix breaches and leaks, or who ‘gets in the way’ of innovation, security should be embedded across people, processes, and technologies. Security needs to be a team sport that works alongside IT and developers to ensure protection across clouds, apps and all digital infrastructure. We have to develop a culture where all teams have shared interests and common goals or metrics, and where they speak one language. There’s overwhelming value to the business when IT, security, and developers are all part of the decision making, design, and execution.”

Shared team priorities and engagement will pave the way forward and there’s already progress being made on this front. More than half (53%) of respondents expect security and development teams to be unified within three years. And 42% expect security to become more embedded in the development process in that same period. There’s a broader acknowledgment that cross-team alignment empowers businesses to reduce team silos (71%), create more secure applications (70%) and increase agility to adopt new workflows & technologies (66%).

The full study, complete with recommendations to bridge the divide between developer and security teams, can be downloaded <a href="https://www.vmware.com/resources/security/bridging-the-developer-and-security-divide.html">here</a>.

VMware commissioned a survey, undertaken by an independent research organization, Forrester Consulting, in April 2021. 1,475 IT and security managers and above (including CIOs and CISOs) with responsibility for security strategy and decision-making were surveyed with an additional 5 qualitative interviews with IT and security and development VP and above (including CIOs and CISOs) with responsibility for development or security strategy decision-making. Respondents were from a range of industries including technology services, manufacturing, financial services, retail and healthcare. The research was carried out across 26 countries around the world, including: Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, France, Finland, Germany, India, Italy, Israel, Japan, Norway, New Zealand, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, Singapore, South Korea, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, UAE.

VMware software powers the world’s complex digital infrastructure. The company’s cloud, app modernization, networking, security, and digital workspace offerings help customers deliver any application on any cloud across any device. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, VMware is committed to being a force for good, from its breakthrough technology innovations to its global impact. For more information, please visit <a href="https://www.vmware.com/company.html">https://www.vmware.com/company.html</a>

Samantha Mayowa VMware Global Communications smayowa@vmware.com +1 (781) 552-3062

Kerry Tuttle VMware Global Communications ktuttle@vmware.com +1 (470) 247-1987

VMware announced findings from a study conducted by Forrester Consulting on the relationship between IT, security, and development teams as organizations adopt a Zero Trust security model.

As organizations adopt a Zero Trust security model, bridging the developer and security divide is more important than ever. Learn why in this new study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of VMware.

https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/MicrosoftTeams-image-1.png

As organizations adopt a Zero Trust security model, bridging the developer and security divide is more important than ever. Learn why in this new study conducted by @Forrester Consulting on behalf of @VMware.

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