In recent years, the cyber threat landscape has drastically changed. Hackers have become more nuanced and intelligent, increasing the threat they represent to businesses, as shown by Gen V cyberattacks like the SolarWinds hack.
The Zero Trust security model appears like a new security concept, especially due to the recent shift in organizational systems that opened doors for increased attacks during the pandemic. However, zero Trust has been around for over a decade. The 2022 Cyber Security Report from Check Point Research details some of the sophisticated attacks businesses faced in 2021 and how they developed into 2022.
The spread of COVID-19 during the pandemic significantly contributed to the development of cyber dangers. Companies experienced a cyber pandemic in addition to the COVID-19 pandemic as hackers exploited modifications to corporate IT architectures brought on by COVID-19.
Several frameworks exist for security architecture; zero trust is the most important one to consider. The main goal is to develop an efficient security architecture. Looking at the existing frameworks, you may find that they might not fit precisely in some situations. The concept of security architecture has many faces, and each framework has its focus and strengths. In 2022, Zero trust could be the best to be considered. Check here to learn more.
Cultivating Cyber Security Culture In The Enterprise
Everyone must take responsibility for cyber security. It must be integrated into every facet of digital transformation. Most cyberattacks still target people as their primary objective. Employees are the weakest link in the security concept since one malicious link click might put the entire company’s IT infrastructure at risk. Therefore, it is crucial to educate all stakeholders on best practices and imbibe a security-alert mindset among all staff, external workers, vendors, and other stakeholders. Employees are expected to get security awareness training and workshops. A company has already spent a lot of money on cybersecurity equipment, so ensuring all its stakeholders are adequately trained will be ideal. Organizations must integrate cybersecurity into every architectural element as a critical component of their overall strategy, and zero trust should be considered.
Creating Transparency On Security Metrics
To improve, there is a need to have visibility on every function. The creation of End to End visibility of security metrics that align with the NIST framework or ISO 27001 is therefore essential. This could be used for overall enterprise governance. Security metrics can be used to generate information and ensure that steps are taken to enhance overall security. The cybersecurity industry uses many predefined metrics. It’s crucial to choose the appropriate measurements and develop a strategy for measuring, analyzing, and implementing the fastest ways of improvement.
Reduce Employee Negligence Levels
There is a need to educate your staff on the importance of adhering to cybersecurity regulations, which is very crucial in safeguarding the system. In the 2022 Ponemon Cost of Insider Threats Global Report, stakeholders’ incompetence was to blame for 62% of all insider data breaches last year.
Educating your staff about the value of adhering to cybersecurity regulations is a crucial strategy to combat employee carelessness and security errors: To lessen sloppy work by employees in an organization, people need to be aware of the cyber hazards that your business combat and how they impact the bottom line.
Inform your staff of the significance of each computer security step, like installing only trusted applications and protecting endpoints against malware and others. Giving examples of actual security breaches, their effects, and the challenges associated with recovery will give them an edge on what they are up to.
Educate Staff Over Common Phishing Tactics
Your staff should learn how to avoid the hacker’s bait. Phishing attacks are frequently used by cybercriminals to hack employee passwords, infect a company’s computer systems with malware, and can also collect employee financial information. According to a survey by the Identity Theft Resource Centre, phishing and its variants, smishing and Business Email Compromise (BEC), were the most prevalent types of cyberattacks in 2021.
When a malicious link is sent to mobile devices via text messages, this is known as smishing and can also be identified as SMS fishing. Attackers attempt to obtain crucial private information, like credit cards.
Zero Tolerance for Failing To Adhere to Cyber Hygiene
The majority of cyberattacks happen because businesses don’t practice good cyber hygiene. It is crucial to establish a foundational level of cyber hygiene, make sure it is clearly understood by everyone, and guarantee that its KPIs are regularly monitored. No one should be tolerated for not practicing good internet hygiene. It is crucial to take measures like SLAs for patch management that cover all operating systems and applications and include tools for constant visibility of vulnerabilities. It’s crucial to set up sophisticated scanning and monitoring systems. The zero trust principle must underpin all frameworks and systems: don’t “assume,” verify! Instead of requiring all employees to log onto the business network, 100% multi-factor authentication solutions should be implemented.
Establishing a Practical Plan for Cyber Resilience
Cyber incidents are on the high side, even though companies invest significantly in security controls and work tirelessly to curb cybersecurity advancement. Consequently, it is crucial to create a comprehensive cyber resilience program. In addition, there should be a regular check to ensure that everyone is aware of the measures to respond promptly and coherently and to work fast to get the business back on track.
Obtaining Sufficient Cyber Insurance
The modern world is exceptionally networked and vulnerable to highly skilled hackers. System breaches have made it simple for cybercriminals to access private data, harming businesses’ bottom lines and reputations. The idea of cyber insurance emerged in reaction to this expanding threat. Cyber insurance seeks to reduce or eliminate a company’s exposure to risk in exchange for a regular payment or fee, which makes it different from every other insurance. Companies with an online presence in the modern world are subject to cyberattacks and should get cyber insurance. All businesses should be aware of the exclusions in their cyber insurance policies, which cover business loss, ransomware payment, reputation loss, damages and impact of class action litigation, and more.
Conclusion
We undervalue and almost neglect the importance of cyber security. To safeguard operations and improve the security posture, an organization’s basic processes must incorporate cybersecurity, and it’s the structural system. Protecting data, networks, assets, and everything else online against unwanted access, breaches, and hacking is what cybersecurity entails. A firm can be shielded and maintained with a well-structured system from damaging breach campaigns and online assaults by a well-defined and efficient cybersecurity program to achieve its goal and purposes.
