Companies Battle Another Pandemic: Skyrocketing Hacking Attempts

Companies Battle Another Pandemic: Skyrocketing Hacking Attempts

Weak Wi-Fi passwords, shared laptops are the stuff of cybersecurity nightmares

Work-from-home requirements have magnified cybersecurity threats for practically every company, whose data now must traverse Wi-Fi networks with passwords named after the family dog while workers share devices with teenagers taking classes on Zoom or playing Fortnite with their friends.

Security researchers have warned that hackers are targeting employees doing business from their new, makeshift workplaces, using techniques such as scam emails that pretend to be videoconference invitations but that actually steal network credentials.

Technology, health-care and financial companies aren’t the only ones under siege. With around half the U.S. workforce working remotely, according to a June study from the National Bureau of Economic Research, even companies like Kraft-Heinz Co. are experiencing an uptick in attempts on their networks.