A new global study by the security firm McAfee and the Science Applications International Corporate (SAIC) found that hackers have turned their attention to stealing intellectual property and business secrets.
In the new study, "Underground Economies: Intellectual Capital and Sensitive Corporate Data Now the Latest Cybercrime Currency", reveals that growing number of hackers have started to specialise in the theft of trade secrets, marketing plans, R&D data, and source code.
McAfee vice-president and chief technology officer for endpoint security Simon Hunt said cybercriminals have shifted their focus from physical assets to data-driven properties, such as trade secrets or product planning documents.
Hunt added, "We’ve seen significant attacks targeting this type of information. Sophisticated attacks such as Operation Aurora, and even unsophisticated attacks like Night Dragon, have infiltrated some of the largest and seemingly most protected corporations in the world. Criminals are targeting corporate intellectual capital and they are often succeeding."
McAfee has alerted companies to be vigilant as they move into the cloud or third-party hosting centres.
SAIC Cyber Operations vice-president Scott Aken said most organisations spend enormous sums of money protecting the less critical portions of their network while the crown jewels, their intellectual capital, remain wide open.
"The thorough analysis of what lies on the network, combined with a solid Defense in Depth strategy, all implemented by a properly trained staff can do wonders for protecting an organization’s data," Aken said.
The study also found that companies are looking to store and process intellectual property abroad to save money.
It rated China, Russia, and Pakistan to be the most vulnerable places for data storage, whereas the US, the UK, and Germany as the safest.
