RDP is common across businesses now that roughly half of all Americans can work at least part time from home.
Employees can keep their work computers in the office but use them from their home devices through RDP. How Cybercriminals Target RDP As convenient as RDP is, it carries significant cybersecurity risks.
It should be no surprise that RDP compromise is among the most common attack vectors for ransomware.
The most straightforward is using brute force or stolen credentials to log into it, as RDP only requires a username and password.
Another common method is to intercept RDP communications, which can be easy because this protocol almost always uses the same port.
Once inside your computer's RDP, criminals can install ransomware remotely.
How To Protect RDP Against Ransomware These vulnerabilities are concerning, especially given rising remote work rates.
Here's how you can secure your RDP against ransomware attacks.
Disable Unnecessary Features The first step in securing RDP is to turn off any unneeded features.
If you never use this protocol, it's safest to deactivate RDP altogether.
If you use RDP, there are several optional features to consider switching off.
Use Strong Password Management Password management is another crucial part of RDP security.
Compromised credentials are the No. 1 cause of data breaches and the easiest way into RDP, so use strong, unique passwords on these accounts.
RDP doesn't require it by default, so turning it on provides a critical extra layer of security.
Limit RDP Logins RDP also has several restrictions you should consider.
You should also use a firewall to restrict RDP access to just your devices' IP addresses.
You can also require users to connect to a virtual private network before using RDP. VPNs encrypt any form of device communication, so this restriction stops criminals lying in wait at specific ports.
Keep Everything up to Date Remember to update RDP frequently.
As with any other software, you should also use a reliable anti-malware solution to protect RDP. Be sure to keep this up to date.
Once you're aware of these attacks and how they work, you can protect yourself and your team from ransomware's favorite attack vector.
This Cyber News was published on feeds.dzone.com. Publication date: Tue, 19 Dec 2023 13:13:05 +0000