Matthew Carr On How Your Private Equity Firm or Portfolio Company Is at Risk of Cyber Attacks and How To Prevent Them

Matthew Carr is the Co-Founder and Head of Research & Technology at Atum Cell - a firm that provides leading-edge cybersecurity software, hardware, and services for companies and government agencies in North America and Europe. He is an award-winning cybersecurity researcher and penetration tester specializing in cyber threat management. He held senior positions in security at IKEA, IBM, and SecureLink, where he built a strong base of real-world experience.

What You Will Learn

The Rising Number of Cyber Attacks on Private Equity 

Best Practices and Why All PE Firms Need to Build a Cybersecurity Culture

Common and Emerging Cyber Threats Currently Plaguing PE Firms 

Breakdown

[00:45] Getting to Know Matthew Carr 

[02:13] Common Mistakes by PE Firms and Their Portfolio Companies 

[04:19] Types of Cyber Attacks Targeting PE Firms

[07:51] Cybersecurity Threats and Vulnerabilities in Private Equity

[11:22] How PE Firms can Build and Implement a Cybersecurity Culture

[15:00] Easy Ways to Improve a PE Firm's Cybersecurity

[19:26] Take This One Action Step to Protect Yourself Against Cyber Threats

[22:45] Reasons Why Cybersecurity Awareness Training is Important

[27:15] Matthew's Go-to Self-Improvement Resources

[28:52] Parting Thought

Common Cybersecurity Attacks in Private Equity 

Although cybersecurity is a big concern in almost all industries, cyber attacks on PE firms have increased in recent years. Interestingly, the threats are not only a problem for firms with deep pockets but extend even to small upcoming companies. For a PE firm, data breaches can have business-ending consequences. For example, they spook investors, negatively impact valuations, and damage a firm's reputation. 

According to Matthew, these are some of the most common ways hackers target PE firms.

●        Social Engineering - This is the simplest and most common attack in PE right now. Attackers use psychological manipulation to gain access to confidential information or resources.

●        Known Vulnerabilities - Expert attackers leverage known vulnerabilities in a system to gain access to a PE firm's data. A typical loophole is outdated systems. Matthew explains that using outdated software presents numerous security vulnerabilities that put your data and business at risk.

●        Zero-Day Vectors - Zero-day attacks stem from an operating system or computer software flaw unknown to the software's publisher. The term "Zero-day" is scary because it is unknown, and there is no patch or antivirus for this vulnerability.

●        Zero-Click Attacks - These attacks are fully remote and provide access to a victim's data in real time and without any action from the target. Zero-click attacks are dangerous because they can take place without the victim clicking on a malicious website or app.

Other Media References

Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear 

The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson

How to Contact Matthew

Atumcell.com

Matthew's LinkedIn 

Matthew's email address - [email protected]