"USB Threats Could Critically Impact Business Operations"

According to a report released by Honeywell, USB threats that can severely impact business operations increased significantly during a disruptive year when the usage of removable media and network connectivity also grew. Researchers found that 37% of threats were specifically designed to utilize removable media, which almost doubled from 19% from the 2020 report. The researchers also found that 79% of cyber threats originating from USB devices or removable media could lead to critical business disruption in the operational technology (OT) environment. There was also a 30% increase in the use of USB devices in production facilities last year, highlighting the growing dependence on removable media. The researchers stated that many industrial and OT systems are air-gapped or cut off from the internet to protect them from attacks, which means intruders are using removable media and USB devices as an initial attack vector to penetrate networks and open them up to significant attacks.

Help Net Security reports: "USB Threats Could Critically Impact Business Operations"