Cyber security: Advice for protecting against Ropemaker attacks

Exploring the increasing threat of email hacking and how businesses can act now to combat them.

Email security is under siege, and businesses must act swiftly to counter increasingly sophisticated threats. Malicious forces are targeting everything from construction and telecoms businesses to those working in hospitality and leisure, and more. Here Nathan Charles, our Head of Customer Experience, discusses how UK businesses must strengthen their defences against evolving cyber risks like Ropemaker — a cutting-edge form of email hacking that traditional methods struggle to combat.

The rise of Ropemaker

Recent technological advancements have empowered both businesses and bad actors. Tools like generative AI and collaborative software enhance productivity, but they also give cybercriminals new avenues for innovation. One such innovation is the Ropemaker attack, which exploits an email system’s vulnerabilities by dynamically altering links in emails after they pass through your organisation’s firewalls and land in your inbox.

It works by allowing hackers to send carefully crafted HTML emails and uses CSS, which are typically employed to style web pages, to manipulate a remote file hosted on their server. This enables them to swap an initially harmless link for a malicious one, bypassing conventional email security tools designed to block harmful links at the gate.

A new approach to cyber security

Phishing emails have long been a top threat vector, but Ropemaker takes the game to a new level. Traditional defences, such as static link scanning, won’t catch this type of attack and, therefore, the odds of attacks being successful are much higher.

If your business hasn’t updated its email security strategies recently, now is the time to act. With Ropemaker attacks on the rise, staying ahead requires proactive measures and expert guidance.

At OryxAlign, we’ve helped organisations across key industry sectors, including construction, telecoms, data centres, education, hospitality, leisure and beyond, fortify their systems against modern threats. 

This is especially needed as these sectors are often the targets of cyber-attacks. For example, construction firms dealing with high-value contracts and supply chain networks are common targets for phishing attacks. Hackers use these to impersonate suppliers or clients to intercept payments and compromise operations. Successful attacks in construction can stall important projects, cause financial losses and damage reputations.

The same is often seen in hospitality and leisure where booking systems are vulnerable to phishing attacks and payment fraud, with malicious actors regularly targeting customer databases. This can harm customer trust and, in extreme cases, lead to legal repercussions.

Our team is skilled in developing tailored cyber security measures that address a wide spectrum of risks, from phishing and spoofing to denial-of-service attacks. We also specialise in delivering training sessions and workshops to help employees become more aware of the signs of an attempted cyber-attack and what to do when they spot one.

The rise of Ropemaker should serve as a wake-up call. Cyber security must evolve as fast as the threats we face. 

To learn more about how we can help defend you and your business against the threat posed by Ropemaker and other advanced cyber-attack methods, visit https://www.oryxalign.com/cyber or email us at hello@oryxalign.com.