The year was book-ended by two significant targeted attacks: Hydraq (a.k.a. Aurora) rang in the New Year, while Stuxnet, though discovered in the summer, garnered significant attention through to the end of the year as information around this threat was uncovered. Although these threats have been analyzed in depth, there are lessons to be learned from these targeted attacks. There were large differences in some of the most publicized targeted attacks in 2010. The scale of attacks ranged from publicly traded, multinational corporations and governmental organizations to smaller companies. In addition, the motivations and backgrounds of the alleged attackers varied widely. Some attacks were also much more effective—and dangerous—than others. All the victims had one thing in common, though—they were specifically targeted and compromised. Many organizations have implemented robust security measures such as isolated networks to protect sensitive computers against worms and other network intrusions. The Stuxnet worm, though, proved that these “air-gapped” networks can be compromised and that they still require additional layers of security. While Stuxnet is a very complex threat, not all malicious code requires this level of complexity to breach an isolated network. Because an increasing amount of malicious code incorporates mechanisms to propagate through removable media such as USB drives, isolated networks require some of the same policies and protection as user networks to prevent compromise. Endpoint protection that blocks access to external ports, such as a device control policy, can help defend against these threats