As cyber attacks by nation-states and criminals become more bold and effective, Google claims that Gmail prevents over 100 million phishing attempts every day and Google Play Protect scans over 100 billion apps for malware and other issues.
Some of the most broad and serious cyber attacks against digital infrastructure in history have occurred in the last six months, affecting public utilities, private sector companies, government agencies, and people living in democracies all over the world.
Commenting on the development, Kent Walker, SVP of Global Affairs at Google, said “We are deeply concerned by these trends. Security is the cornerstone of our product strategy. We have dedicated teams like Project Zero who focus on finding and fixing vulnerabilities across the web to make the internet safer for all of us,”
In the United States, Google said it is dedicated to supporting the most recent White House Cybersecurity Executive Order, which takes important steps to strengthen America’s cyber defences in vital areas.
Google stated that it is committed to modernising computer systems, making security simple and scalable by default, and implementing best practices such as zero trust frameworks.
Walker emphasised “As we saw with SolarWinds and the Microsoft Exchange attacks, proprietary systems and restrictions on interoperability and data portability can amplify a network’s vulnerability, helping attackers scale up their efforts,”
“At Google, we’ve emphasised securing the software supply chain and we’ve long built technologies and advocated for standards that enhance the integrity and security of software,” he added.
In response to the increased number of ransomware attacks, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the US Justice Department have announced that such cyber incidents will be treated as terror attacks.
JBS USA, a major meat producer, was the victim of cyberattack, with a ransom demand from a criminal organization most likely based in Russia.
The recent ransomware attack comes just weeks after Colonial Pipeline was targeted by a similar attack that forced the firm to shut down nearly 5,500 miles of fuel pipeline for days.
According to Google, significant improvements in cybersecurity will necessitate collaboration between the public and private sectors in areas such as sharing cyber threat information, developing a comprehensive, defensive security posture to protect against ransomware, and coordinating how they identify and invest in next-generation security tools.
Walker said “Governments need industry-wide support and we are ready and willing to do our part,”