How does the word go across the world when a business experiences a data breach or other unusual incident? Everyone is aware that the media and entertainment sector is crucial in this situation. But what happens if the media outlet itself is impacted? It’s time to comprehend the issues and difficulties associated with cyber security in this sector as well.

While businesses in every industry understand that cybersecurity cannot be disregarded, the entertainment industry is one that frequently ignores digital security. They foster the misconception that it faces fewer cyberthreats than other sectors. This careless approach provides cybercriminals plenty of room to investigate the weaknesses and steal data. According to a recent survey, the media and entertainment sector was the most affected, with over 60% of the firms reporting ransomware attacks.

Cyberattacks against the film and media industries can take the form of threats, script theft, the disclosure of confidential material and unaired episodes, as well as subscriber hacking. Here are some common security risks that might do the company irreparable harm.

Phishing: Hundreds of public emails are inboxed in organizations’ official email everyday. It could be service feedback, service requests, complaints and more. Phishing threats loom large here. A potentially harmful email in disguise of an appreciation email could be disastrous if opened and clicked.

Brand Impersonation: Scammers use email to impersonate a trusted entity, such as a well-known media company or an entertainment provider. An attacker may try to get customers to give up account credentials, payment details or click on malicious links. These attackers also lure employees into giving confidential information. Attackers often use domain-spoofing techniques or lookalike domains to make their impersonation attempts convincing.

Lack of Cyber Awareness: Employees that are not aware about cybersecurity are an organisation’s worst nightmare. They are ignorant of the dangers they face on a daily basis in an era of increased cybercrime risk.

Film and Media Industry Cyberattacks in the News

One can question why these cyberattacks happen and how frequently successful data theft costs businesses and customers money. Both the viewers and the firms in the sector are impacted. Several media outlets have reported data theft and even extortion requests. Here are some notable examples from the actual world:

• HBO Troubles: HBO has been a victim of cyberattacks a few times now. There have been reports of hackers getting away with 1.5 terabytes of data, including scripts. An unreleased episode of the hit show “Game of Thrones” was available on illegal websites in another incident.
• Netflix Hacking: Hackers have targeted more than 110 million Netflix Subscribers with an email scam and are said to have succeeded in stealing people’s credit card details. In addition to this, Netflix has had to deal with the theft of its original shows, such as “Orange Is the New Black.” The show faced a malicious cyberattack when ten unaired episodes appeared online.
• SonyPictures Hack: Sony Pictures’ private information was exposed by a hacking organization going by the name “Guardians of Peace.” The data contained private details about Sony Pictures employees and their families, e-mails between staff members, details about executive pay at the business, copies of Sony movies that had not yet been published, plans for upcoming Sony movies, screenplays for specific movies, and other data.

Cost of a Data Breach

An entertainment sector breach frequently entails astronomical costs and recovering one’s footing after a significant assault may be quite challenging. In fact, according to the 2018 Cost of a Data Breach study, each breached record cost the entertainment industry $145 per record. The survey also found that the entertainment sector has the longest average time to identify, at 287 days.

Protective Measures

• Set up DMARC reporting and enforcement. You can get visibility into domain fraud using DMARC authentication to protect against domain spoofing and brand hijacking. Our ProDMARC reporting provides visibility into how your email domain is used, which in turn allows you to set up DMARC enforcement policies that will prevent spoofing of your domain.
• Educate users. Educate users about cyber attacks by making it a part of security-awareness training. Make sure they can recognize these attacks, understand their fraudulent nature, and know how to report them. Using our ProPHISH phishing simulation tool & ProLMS Tool can train your users to identify these threats, test the effectiveness of your training, and identify the users most vulnerable to attacks.
• Monitor Cousin and Look-alike domains. Keep an eye out for signs of brand impersonation to stay ahead of the game and perhaps destroy an attacker’s infrastructure before it goes live or does any damage. Including a solution like ProDISCOVER as part of an email security solution can be applied to detect such attacks that attempt to impersonate  your organization’s own domains.
• Empower your employees to report suspicious emails with just a click of a button. ProPatrol enables alert users and incident responders to collaborate and stop threats. Users may send the original email and other important information straight to their security team by reporting possible dangers with ProPATROL, enabling them to immediately assess and stop attacks.

By incorporating these tools into your cybersecurity strategy, you can fortify your defenses, educate your workforce, and proactively monitor and respond to potential threats.

To experience the full capabilities of our email security suite, Book a demo or contact us at +91 9820116312. Our experts will guide you through the functionalities of our tools, showcase their effectiveness, and tailor solutions to meet the specific needs of your organization. Don’t wait until a cyberattack occurs – take proactive steps to secure your digital assets and ensure the resilience of your business in the face of evolving cyber threats.