Cybersecurity, An Illusion?

Sebastien Callebaut -

Okta's Breach And Arqit's Overconfidence

When a cybersecurity business in the United Kingdom went public last year, it promised to develop encryption technology that would shield the military industry, corporations, and consumers from the prying eyes of hyper-capable quantum computers.

  • At the time, Arqit Quantum Inc. founder and CEO David Williams informed investors that his business had a large backlog of contracts
  • The CEO also stressed that Arqit was set for "hyperscale growth"

Overconfidence Or Plain Lies?

According to The Wall Street Journal, Arqit has offered investors an unduly rosy assessment of its potential revenue and the readiness and workability of its encryption systems.

  • According to persons familiar with the situation, British cybersecurity officials questioned the sustainability of Arqit's suggested approach to encryption technology in a high-level study they privately shared with the company in the summer of 2020
  • The company's hallmark product was an early-stage prototype that couldn't encrypt anything in practical use
  • Unless internet protocols are overhauled, the business's encryption technology might never extend beyond specific uses

Okta's Massive Breach

A security breach that provided hackers access to Okta's internal network harmed 366 corporate customers, or around 2.5% of the company's total customer base, according to Okta.

  • After the Lapsus$ extortion organization posted pictures of Okta's apps and systems on Monday, two months after the hackers first got access to its network, the authentication behemoth confessed the breach
  • The wider security sector blamed Okta for its handling of the breach and the months-long delay in telling customers, who learned about it at the same time that the news emerged on social media

In recent months, the Lapsus$ hacking and extortion gang has targeted a number of high-profile companies. The Lapsus$ organization first appeared on the hacking scene in December, when it launched an assault against Brazil's Ministry of Health, stealing 50 terabytes of data. Since then, the gang has targeted several Big Tech giants such as Samsung, Nvidia, Microsoft, and Okta, touting its access and stolen data to the tens of thousands of subscribers of its Telegram channel.

Disclaimer

Please note that this article does not constitute investment advice in any form. This article is not a research report and is not intended to serve as the basis for any investment decision. All investments involve risk and the past performance of a security or financial product does not guarantee future returns. Investors have to conduct their own research before conducting any transaction. There is always the risk of losing parts or all of your money when you invest in securities or other financial products.

Credits

Photo by Philipp Katzenberger on Unsplash.