CHAPTER 1 A. Purpose of Toolkit Table of Contents I. Background 11 II. The Toolkit 12 III. The Assessment Tool 13 IV. The Broader Context 13 V. Participating Organizations 14 I. Background Hardly a day goes by without the press disclosing some major cyber-incident. The past year alone has witnessed a proliferation of cyberthreats, breaches of corporate and governmental networks, major thefts from banks, malware, ransomware, etc. Here are a few notable incidents: McAfee reports 316 threats every second1 Theft of US$81 million from account of Bangladesh at New York Federal Reserve Bank resulting from alleged compromise of SWIFT network2 1 billion hacked Yahoo! accounts3 But cybercrime is not limited to major breaches. Individuals also suffer from threats, exploitation and harassment, or worse. The internet, which has enriched peoples’ lives and made the world a “smaller” place, also enables a range of criminal activity. One recent study4 finds that, while cyberthreats mainly consisted of viruses, worms and Trojans, over time cybercriminals have begun to take advantage of techniques related to social engineering— such as phishing—that target employees having direct access to databases containing confidential business information, as well as pharming, credit card fraud, dedicated denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, identity theft and data theft. According to a Special Eurobarometer commissioned by the European Union (EU), the majority of internet users across the EU do not feel that making online purchases or doing online banking is secure, and have no idea how to navigate the internet safely.5 Many respondents claim to know about cybercrime from newspapers or television, but do not feel informed about the risks that may be experienced. Cybercriminals exploit this lack of awareness. The same study found that more than a third of internet users claim to have received at least one email scam and feel concerned about their sensitive data online.6 Considering the increasing number of people in possession of at least one smart device, and the increasing use of such Page 11 | Chapter 1 | § A. Purpose of Toolkit Table of Contents