E-Business
Check Point Software’s Assessment Reveals How Remote Work has Created a Gap in Organizations’ Security Practices
Check Point® Software Technologies Ltd., a leading provider of cyber security solutions globally, has released findings from a new assessment carried out amongst 1,200 IT security professionals globally, which examines how the shift to remote work changed organizations’ security practices around users, devices, and access.
As the threat landscape evolves and cyber-attacks become increasingly more sophisticated, many organizations have surprisingly not implemented security solutions that ensure best-in-class connectivity and security for remote employees.
The COVID-19 pandemic has forever changed the way in which we work, most companies have transitioned their entire workforce from on-premise to remote working.
While a majority of organizations have fully adopted remote work as a way of life, security wise there are still many gaps that need to be bridged. Organizations are challenged with finding a balance between remote users’ productivity and ensuring device, access and corporate assets security.
According to Check Point Software’s best practices there are five critical security solutions needed to protect remote users against internet-based attacks, which include URL filtering, URL reputation, content disarm & reconstruction (CDR), zero phishing and credentials protection.
However, only 9% of organizations surveyed use all five protections and 11% do not utilize any of the listed methods to secure remote access to corporate applications.
Key findings from globally are:
The remote-access security gap: 70% of organizations allow access to corporate applications from personal devices, such as unmanaged devices or bring your own device (BYOD). Only 5% of respondents reported they use all of the recommended remote access security methods.
The need for internet access security: 20% of respondents reported that they do not use any of the five methods mentioned to protect remote users while browsing the internet, and only 9% use all five methods to protect against internet-based attacks.
A lack of protection against ransomware: 26% of respondents do not have an endpoint solution that can automatically detect and stop ransomware attacks. Thirty-one percent do not use any of the mentioned methods to prevent sensitive business data from leaking outside the organization.
Email and Mobile Security: Only 12% of organizations that allow corporate access from mobile devices use a mobile threat defense solution. This highlights how exposed organizations are too fast moving, 5th generation cyber-attacks that target remote workers.
“While many companies have embraced the new hybrid and remote work models, they have not adopted all of the critical solutions needed to secure their remote workforce. This survey confirmed that organizations have a gap when it comes to users, devices, and access security,” said Itai Greenberg, Vice President of Product Management at Check Point Software Technologies.
“To bridge this gap, organizations should progress to a Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) architecture. SASE security models provide quick and simple access to corporate applications, for any user and from any device, and protect remote employees from all internet-based threats.”
Overall in 2021, researchers have seen 50% more attacks per week on corporate networks. As cyber attacks become more sophisticated and exploit the remote work environment, enterprises need a consolidated cybersecurity solution that strengthens their defenses and improves their agility against attacks.
Check Point Harmony is a unified security solution for users, devices, and access. The solution provides organizations with comprehensive and robust workforce security, by consolidating 5 security products to provide complete protection for remote users – all in a single solution that is easy to use, manage and buy.
A new global survey from the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) reveals that 52% of marketing leaders believe generic top-level domains (gTLDs – the three characters or more that come after the dot in a URL) have strong potential for enhancing brand presence online; however, a knowledge gap is preventing many brands from taking advantage of the opportunities that a gTLD can bring.
The research surveyed over 2,000 marketing leaders across eight countries (Brazil, China, India, Mexico, Nigeria, South Africa, U.K., and U.S.) with the purpose of creating a picture of the evolving digital marketing landscape and understanding the levels of awareness around gTLDs.
It comes as ICANN prepares to open the next application window for new gTLDs in April 2026 the New gTLD Program: Next Round – the first opportunity in more than a decade for organizations to apply to operate their own gTLD.
Top-level domains are the letters found at the end of an Internet address (with gTLDs including .charity, .menu, .paris and .ceo). Brands can apply to run their own gTLD as a way to indicate the purpose of their organization or to clearly mark a website as being related to their brand.
The research shows that increasing brand awareness and visibility is the top priority for marketing leaders (54%) and that over half believe that gTLDs have strong potential for enhancing brand presence online.
However, the research also shows that almost a third (32%) of marketing leaders surveyed are unfamiliar with gTLDs, which suggests that operating a new gTLD may be a strategic opportunity that many organizations are currently overlooking.
Key findings from the research include:
- After defining a gTLD, 92% of marketing leaders responded that they could see the potential benefits to gTLDs, with enhanced brand differentiation (46%), improved customer trust (45%), better control over online presence (44%), and improved SEO (44%) topping the list.
- 19% of marketing leaders work for organizations that have previously applied for a gTLD.
- Cost concerns (31%), knowledge gaps (27%), and insufficient resources (24%) were identified as the main barriers to application.
- The research revealed notable regional variations, with Nigerian (74%) and Indian (61%) marketing leaders showing the strongest belief in gTLDs’ potential for branding and online presence. In contrast, marketers in China expressed more mixed views, with 50% seeing strong potential but 49% considering gTLDs an unnecessary investment with unclear Return On Investment.
The findings come at a time when marketing leaders are facing significant challenges in standing out from competitors (53%), attracting and engaging the right audience (52%), and keeping pace with digital trends (47%).
A new gTLD can be an innovative tool for commerce and communication. They allow businesses in specific countries, sectors, or niche markets to create an exclusive, descriptive, and memorable label on the Internet.
An entity operating a gTLD can provide its users and customers with an extra measure of confidence in its security and legitimacy online. This can be valuable in today’s environment, where users often don’t know whether they can trust the source on the Internet.
Theresa Swinehart, SVP, Global Domains & Strategy said: “The New gTLD Program: Next Round presents an opportunity for businesses, communities, governments, and others to apply to operate their own secure space online, tailored to fit their organization, community, culture, language, and customer interests.
Now is also the moment for brands to consider applying for a gTLD, and this research tells us there is still a lack of awareness. ICANN can help provide information and raise awareness of the Next Round and the opportunity it presents for global communities, organizations, and businesses, including brands.”
To help address the knowledge gap, ICANN is developing resources to help organizations understand the application process and potential opportunities for gTLDs ahead of the 2026 application window. ICANN also offers the Applicant Support Program (ASP), which provides financial and non-financial assistance to eligible applicants.
Kaspersky’s Global Research and Analysis Team (GReAT) experts at the 10th annual Cyber Security Weekend – META 2025 held recently, talked about supply chain attacks and reported that by the end of 2024 a total of 14,000 malicious packages were found in open-source projects, a 48% increase compared to the end of 2023. 42 million versions of open-source packages have been examined by Kaspersky throughout 2024 in search for vulnerabilities.
Open-source is software with source code that anyone can inspect, modify, and enhance. Popular open-source packages include GoMod, Maven, NuGet, npm, PyPI, and others.
These are tools that power countless applications and help developers easily find, install, and manage pre-built code libraries, making it simpler to build software by reusing code others have written. Attackers take advantage of the popularity of these and other packages.
In March 2025, the Lazarus Group was reported to have deployed several malicious npm packages, which were downloaded multiple times before removal. These packages contained malware to steal credentials, cryptocurrency wallet data, and deploy backdoors, targeting developers’ systems across Windows, macOS, and Linux.
The attack leveraged GitHub repositories for added legitimacy, highlighting the group’s sophisticated supply chain tactics. Kaspersky’s GReAT also found other npm packages related to this attack. Malicious npm packages could have been integrated into web development, cryptocurrency platforms, and enterprise software, risking widespread data theft and financial losses.
In 2024, a sophisticated backdoor was discovered in XZ Utils versions 5.6.0 and 5.6.1, a widely used compression library in Linux distributions. Inserted by a trusted contributor, the malicious code targeted SSH servers, enabling remote command execution and threatening countless systems globally.
Detected before widespread exploitation due to performance anomalies, the incident highlighted the dangers of supply chain attacks. XZ Utils is integral to operating systems, cloud servers, and IoT devices, making its compromise a threat to critical infrastructure and enterprise networks.
In 2024, Kaspersky’s GReAT discovered that attackers uploaded malicious Python packages like chatgpt-python and chatgpt-wrapper to PyPI, mimicking legitimate tools for interacting with ChatGPT APIs.
These packages, designed to steal credentials and deploy backdoors, capitalised on the popularity of AI development to trick developers into downloading them. These packages could have been used in AI development, chatbot integrations, and data analytics platforms, endangering sensitive AI workflows and user data.
“Open-source software is the backbone of many modern solutions, but its openness is being weaponised. The 50% rise in malicious packages by the end of 2024 shows attackers are actively embedding sophisticated backdoors and data stealers in popular packages, which millions rely on.
“Without rigorous vetting and real-time monitoring, a single compromised package can trigger a global breach. Organisations need to secure the supply chain before the next XZ Utils-level attack succeeds,” comments Dmitry Galov, Head of Research Center for Russia and CIS at Kaspersky’s Global Research and Analysis Team.
Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has launched an investigation into allegations that the confidentiality and integrity of candidates’ personal data may have been compromised by hackers.
The Commission initiated the inquiry following concerns over possible data breaches during examinations.
Preliminary findings indicate that several examination centres may not have implemented adequate technical and organizational measures to safeguard candidates’ personal information, as required under data protection regulations.
Although the incident reportedly affected 379, 997 candidates, the NDPC’s investigation is poised to cover a systemic audit of data processing and third parties.
It will be recalled that JAMB recently admitted that a technical error on its platform affected a total of 379,997 candidates in 157 examination centres across Lagos and the South-East.
Further investigation led to the arrest of at least 20 suspects who are currently in the custody of the Department of State Services and the Nigerian Police Force.
Nigeria Relaunches National Talent Export Programme to Unlock $1 Trillion Global Outsourcing Market
First Asset Management Receives 2024 Fund Manager Award
NiRA Holds 17th AGM, Elects New Leadership to Propel .ng Domain Growth
Uche Uzoebo, SANEF CEO Makes Case for More Financial Inclusion Strategies Targeting Women
Survey Reveals Marketing Leaders See Strong Potential in gTLDS Despite Knowledge Gap
General News2 days agoUche Uzoebo, SANEF CEO Makes Case for More Financial Inclusion Strategies Targeting Women
Broadcasting2 days agoACAMB Champions Bankers Wellness with Aerobics Fitness Session
General News2 days agoHydrogen, Lagos State Touch Thousands of Business Owners with “Healthy Heart, Healthy Business” Outreach
News2 days agoUK Minister for Africa Visits Nigeria to Deepen Strategic Partnership
E-Business2 days agoSurvey Reveals Marketing Leaders See Strong Potential in gTLDS Despite Knowledge Gap
General News2 hours agoNigeria Relaunches National Talent Export Programme to Unlock $1 Trillion Global Outsourcing Market
News2 hours agoFirst Asset Management Receives 2024 Fund Manager Award
Telecom2 hours agoNiRA Holds 17th AGM, Elects New Leadership to Propel .ng Domain Growth