With India leading the charge towards a digital transformation with unprecedented growth in fintech, e-commerce, digital payments, and working remotely, the cyber threat environment has become very volatile. Brute force attacks remain one of the most widespread and hazardous types of cyber-attacks in such an environment.
Brute force attacks can affect businesses on many levels, including compromising cloud-based services, hacking corporate email accounts and locking up businesses. In such a scenario, Cyber Insurance is not a luxury anymore but a need, particularly to Indian companies that are struggling to deal with financial risk and regulatory exposure.
This blog post will dive into the anatomy of brute force attacks, the real-life implications on Indian businesses, the prevention measures, and how Cyber Insurance policies in India offer the necessary financial and legal protection.
What is a Brute Force Attack?
Brute force attack is a method applied by cybercriminals to systematically guess the log-in credentials, encryption keys or hidden web pages by trying all the possible combinations until they work. Such attacks are normally automated and conducted with the help of strong software which can test thousands, even millions of combinations within a second.
Compared to advanced zero-day exploits, brute force attacks are unsophisticated yet incredibly tenacious, and they attack the lowest hanging fruit: human laxity in password hygiene and access control.
How Does a Brute Force Attack Work?
- A hacker discovers a login portal (email, web admin or server)
- The hacker uses software tools (such as Hydra or Hashcat) and attempts thousands of possible username-password permutations and combinations
- If successful, the attacker gains access, although unauthorized
- After gaining access, the attacker can steal information, install malware, or commit financial fraud
The biggest issue is that these brute force attacks can remain unnoticed over an extended period of time, particularly when throttling or monitoring systems are absent.
Common Types of Brute Force Attacks
Cybercriminals do not apply a one-size-fits-all approach. The strategy is based on the defensive amenities of the target and the goal the attacker has. The most widely used forms of brute force attacks are as follows:
1. Simple Brute Force Attack
- Tries all possible combinations of passwords
- This form of attack is more effective against short and simple passwords
- Can be easily eliminated through rate-limiting and account locking methods
2. Dictionary Attack
- Such brute force attacks primarily use a precompiled list of passwords commonly applied by users
- Rapid and efficient due to the weak and easy to guess passwords that are frequently used by the users (For example, “admin123″,”welcome” or “India@2025”)
3. Hybrid Attack
- This is a combination of the dictionary and brute force attack techniques.
- Alters dictionary words using numbers or symbols (e.g. Admin2025!) or “Welcome@123”)
4. Reverse Brute Force Attack
- Begins with a frequently used password and tries to discover corresponding usernames
- These brute force attacks are particularly threatening to open services such as SSH, RDP, or FTP
5. Credential Stuffing
- Takes advantage of credentials that have been revealed in previous data breaches
- Assumes that users re-use usernames and passwords on many sites
Such brute force attacks are frequently facilitated by the availability of password leaks on the dark web. Moreover, on numerous occasions, Indian enterprises are not even aware that their systems have been compromised already.
Where Are Brute Force Attacks Targeted?
Brute force attacks are not restricted to the login screens alone. The opportunities to attack have increased considerably as Indian companies adopt cloud-native tools and API integrations.
Key Targets of Brute Force Attacks Include:
- Corporate email accounts (Such as Microsoft 365, Google Workspace and so on)
- Customer portals and web administrator panels
- RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol) servers
- Cloud environments such as AWS, Azure, GCP
- Enterprise VPNs
- IoT devices with default passwords
- Banking applications and payment gateway consoles
The India-specific 2023 Cyber Threat Report by Palo Alto Networks noted that the brute force attacks on RDP and SSH endpoints have grown by more than 135 percent compared to 2022, specifically within the BFSI and IT industries in India.
What Tools and Tactics Do Attackers Use?
To ensure maximum effectiveness, cybercriminals use high-speed tools, which are publicly available or open source. Some of the most widely used are as follows:
- John the Ripper – A powerful tool that can recover password
- Aircrack-ng – Wireless password cracking tool
- Hydra – A network logon cracker that supports more than 50 protocols
- Burp Suite – frequently used to automate online brute force attacks
- Botnets – Robust network systems that can execute attack scripts at large scale
Numerous attackers have turned these days to the dark web to rent ‘Brute Force-as-a-Service’ models . These can enable a non-technical criminal to launch an attack, even with little knowledge.
Real-World Impact on Indian Businesses
The destruction of brute force attacks can be extensive. To begin with, let us consider some of the typical examples:
Case Study 1: Healthcare Tech Breach
In 2022, a Gurugram health-tech startup was a victim of a credential stuffing attack. A hacker exploited the user credentials that had been leaked in the past to gain access to patient histories and medical reports. The information leak resulted in a complaint filed against the startup under the IT Act in India and investor backlash. Also, it incurred more than 35 lakh in recovery and legal expenses.
Case Study 2: SME Ransomware Triggered by Brute Force
In 2023, a logistics company based in Noida had their RDP port exposed on the Internet. The attackers brute-forced the log in and deployed ransomware that encrypted the core systems.Besides losing 3 days of operations and almost paying 12 lakh rupees in ransom in cryptocurrency, the company also suffered a dent in its reputation.
According to CERT-In reports, more than 16 lakh cyber-incidents were reported during the year 2023 and a considerable percentage of them were cases of unauthorized access, which is a characteristic feature of brute force or credential stuffing attacks.
How to Prevent Brute Force Attacks
No organization is immune to cyberattacks. However, the following steps can drastically reduce your risk against brute force attacks:
1. Implement Strong Authentication
- Use long, complex passwords with different types of characters
- Enforce Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) or Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) techniques
- Prohibit the use of common passwords (use password blacklists)
2. Enable Account Lockout and Login Delay
- Restrict the number of failed attempts to login
- Introduce delays between each consecutive login attempt
- Alert users to suspicious or unexpected activity
3. Employ CAPTCHA and Rate Limiting
- Prevent automated login attempts using CAPTCHA
- Rate limit the login APIs and forms
4. Secure RDP and SSH Ports
- Disable the ports and services that remain unused for long
- Use VPNs for remote access
- Employ geo-fencing rules to block unauthorized access from high-risk countries
5. Regular Vulnerability Assessments
- Perform regular audits
- Patch weak configurations or obsolete software
- Use penetration testing to ensure you are aware of all the entry points
Cyber Insurance in India: A Strategic Necessity
Even the safest businesses could be a target of a cyberattack. That is where Cyber Insurance is indispensable.
A Cyber Insurance Policy benefits organizations with financial, legal and technical assistance in addressing cyber-related events. In India, demand for these insurance plans has been increasing rapidly, and now virtually all the major and reputed insurance providers are offering standalone cyber liability insurance products.
How Cyber Insurance Helps with Brute Force Attacks
Let us see how Cyber Insurance coverage can help you in the case of a breach involving brute force:
1. Breach Investigation and Incident Response
- This insurance policy covers digital forensic services
- Determines the root cause and traces the damage
- Helps in the restoration of systems that were affected
2. Legal Liability and Regulatory Fines
- This insurance policy covers the costs incurred in legal representation
- Assists in regulatory compliance (especially those mandated in the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023)
- These insurance plans compensate the policyholder for fines or settlements (subject to the defined policy terms)
3. Business Interruption and Recovery
- Compensates for the loss of income due to downtime originating from such attacks
- These insurance plans cover the cost of restoring operations
4. Notification and Public Relations Support
- Includes coverage of customer notification, call center services
- This insurance policy covers the costs incurred in media response and reputation management related to such attacks
5. Extortion and Ransom Payments
- When the brute force results in the deployment of ransomware, then this insurance policy could cover the ransom payments and the negotiation expenses
Selecting the Right Cyber Insurance Policy in India
When selecting the right Cyber Insurance policy, ensure that your policy aligns with your industry, risk exposure and IT posture.
Key Factors You Should Consider:
- Whether the insurance policy provides coverage for brute force attack-related incidents (including unauthorized access, data breach)
- Whether it includes both first-party and third-party liabilities
- Whether you are provided with a clear understanding of exclusions (for example, non-compliance with basic security regulations)
- Whether post-incident support is available
- Whether customization options are available for sectors such as BFSI, IT, healthcare, and e-commerce
Final Thoughts
Brute force attacks are an old school technique, but they are evolving, quicker than ever, and more automated than ever. The dangers of insecure credentials and vulnerable access points will keep building as Indian companies increase their dependence on digital systems.
Cyber Insurance does not substitute cybersecurity, but it complements it. Although most attacks can be blocked using technical defenses, Cyber Insurance offers the financial and legal buffer necessary to survive and bounce back after a breach.
Prevention and protection should be invested in. The current business world is a place where it is not only good practice to be proactive about cybersecurity but a matter of survival.
Lock down your access. Guarantee your information. Protect your business future.
