News

'Virtual hacker' CyBot identifies cyberthreats to ATM networks

October 13, 2016

Israel-based software vendor Cronus Cyber Technologies has developed a virtual hacker system, called CyBot Suite, that imitates the way hackers are thinking and operating in order to help a financial institution identify and mitigate weaknesses within its network.

According to a press release, CyBot Suite technologies are based on Cronus research aimed at predicting the modus operandi of hackers, including both technically and psychologically based decision-making.

Findings from this research led to the development of a software system that works as an army of virtual hackers, adapting to any complex network environment in an effort to identify the most dangerous cybersecurity threats to critical assets of the organization.

The CyBot studies a network, maps it, and builds a set of penetration attacks based on hackers' methodology and preference hierarchy, according to the release.

The CyBot then launches these attacks on the network, adapting routes and breach vectors based on the Cronus' patented advance persistent threat scale, in order to find critical attack scenarios that might lead to SWIFT and ATM system components.

Finally, the attack vectors are presented to the FI's chief information security officer — prioritized according to the Cronus potential risk factor scale — along with recommendations for possible mitigation plans.

Cronus said in the release that its CyBot solution is installed in several Israeli banks — including the First International Bank of Israel — and that these installations have helped the company gain essential insights useful to financial institutions in Europe.