Deception technology for credit unions

Credit unions face some of the most sophisticated and financially damaging cyberattacks, with data security being a prime target. A security breach can create a snowball effect with consequences impacting an entire region. As credit unions’ cyber awareness has increased in the past few years, both security and deception technology are taking the spotlight.

Deception technology, like honeypots, adds another layer of proactive protection. With this capability, credit unions can track ransomware, malware deployed, remote access, and attempted file transfers from a cybercriminal.

What is deception technology?

Like cheddar cheese waiting on a mouse trap, deception technology baits cybercriminals similarly. Deception technology has existed since the 1980s, and credit unions are rediscovering how effective it can work as a cybersecurity defense. This technology deploys decoy databases, files, apps, credentials, and more within a network, acting as lures. This allows a managed detection and response team to detect, track, and defend against the attack without compromising any real assets.

When a cybercriminal touches a decoy, alerts are generated, and intel is gathered, speeding up the incident response time process. Deception technology gives credit unions a leg up in protecting their customers’ sensitive information, assets, and IT environment.

How credit unions can get started with honeypots

Honeypots allow credit unions to expand their security defenses. A honeypot looks like a real computer system, with data and applications, fooling cybercriminals into thinking it is a credit union’s actual network, server, or software application.

Once a cybercriminal takes the bait and enters a honeypot, security operations teams track their movements to better understand their motivations and methods. There are many benefits of deception technology, and below are a few reasons why:

Attack dwell time reduction

Deception technology can be vital for reducing the dwell time between spotting suspicious activity and when a breach or data loss occurs. It is difficult to spot activity from a cybercriminal when their goal is to go undetected. Most solutions will spot an attacker when they make key moves, but they cannot provide crucial details like what warning signs they should’ve looked for from the beginning. With sensitive data and finances at risk, time to detect and respond is critical.

Decoys, specifically honeypots, allow security operation teams to identify when an attacker is present and monitor what happens within every attack phase. In turn, malicious behavior can be recognized and detected before they disrupt a credit union’s virtual environment.

Increase in threat visibility and detection

Cybercriminals get a false sense of accomplishment when infiltrating a network until they realize they have been tricked. Little do they know, they provide insights into an attacker’s tactics and techniques to manage detection and response teams, ultimately increasing security and making it harder on themselves. Deception technology can cover a wide range of attack vectors and detect virtually any attack, including ransomware, lateral movement, man-in-the-middle attacks, and more.

Threat hunting and deception technology

As a part of the investigation process, threat intelligence professionals search for suspicious activity indicating malicious or network compromise. It is a manual process backed by automated searches and existing collected network data correlation. Deception technology, specifically honeypots and threat hunting, go together with a comprehensive security strategy and Managed Detection and Response Services. Both take a proactive approach, going beyond consistently sitting on the defense. Used in isolation, these pieces will not solely protect a credit union, but when a part of a Security Operations Platform, they can further risk prevention for a credit union.

In addition, it allows credit unions to gain insight into the tactics used by cybercriminals, detect malicious behavior early, create traps and lures, and gather vital data and analytics. Honeypots are an excellent type of deception technology to start with while being the perfect complement to threat hunting.

Are your security defenses ready?

Revolutionize your credit union’s tech infrastructure with Adlumin’s innovative solutions. Learn more about how Adlumin’s cybersecurity experts can help you prioritize cybersecurity and test your defenses. Or get started with a demo.