Cybercrime is on the rise; and if your business isn’t prepared to keep bad actors out of your systems, you might be in for a nasty shock. According to Statista, losses from cybercrime worldwide are estimated to reach as high as $9.2 trillion in 2024, and analysts suggest that the frequency of and damage caused by cyberattacks will meteorically rise over the next four years. With consumers and businesses flocking to e-commerce and digitally rendered services, advances in technology putting more tools in bad actors’ hands, and outmoded company security systems creating vulnerabilities, experts expect losses to hit 13.82 trillion by 2028.
Leaders like you see numbers like that and wonder; how can I keep my organization from becoming a statistic? Safeguarding your company from cyberattack is a significant undertaking, requiring leadership, employee cooperation, and state-of-the-art system incorporation. In this article, we’ll break down how you can create a culture of cybersecurity awareness that permeates your organization, which tools you should invest in to protect system vulnerabilities, and what steps you can take to recover after a data breach occurs.
Creating a Culture of Cybersecurity Awareness
Firstly, you have to understand that your organization’s security is only as strong as its weakest link: and that more often than not, that link will turn out to be your employees. In the last three years, employee error and/or negligence has rated 1st or 2nd in most significant causes of data breaches; and around 74% of IT professionals surveyed by Thales note that threats from human error are a “key priority.”
So how can you reinforce against human error? By instituting a culture of cybersecurity awareness throughout your organization. Cybersecurity awareness is not just being aware of the threat, as it were; it’s being vigilant in seeking it out, and knowing how to engage with threats when they inevitably darken your doorstep.
Creating a culture of cybersecurity awareness requires combining employee-focused training with standardized, system-wide protections; a vital aspect of protecting your organization from data breach. To create a culture of cybersecurity awareness, the institute:
- Ongoing cybersecurity training: Regular training will keep employees aware of the most recent and relevant threats, reinforce their existing knowledge of common cybercriminal tactics, and remind them of company procedures when a threat is detected.
- Device hardening protocols: This best practice requires strong passwords to be set and automatically asks users to change those passwords periodically. Implementing device hardening protocols organization-wide makes it more difficult for bad actors to get ahold of passwords and also makes them harder to crack.
- End-to-end encryption: Encrypting data across your organization should be a standard practice, both when it’s in motion and at rest. Whether hackers are spying on networks and attempting to intercept sensitive information in transit, or actively found their way into your network and are just browsing your data, encryption keeps that data shielded and out of their hands.
- Frequent patching: Your network, company website, and operating systems all have inherent flaws that may not be obvious now; but with time, hackers will gain knowledge of and exploit those vulnerabilities. Frequently patching all three helps mitigate that risk by eliminating flaws as they’re detected.
Many of the above solutions are centered on matters of practice; changes in the operational status quo that provide extra layers of protection, but are ultimately internal. You can provide further protection by insulating your systems with external systems, like antivirus software, virtual private networks (VPNs), or activity monitoring solutions. While these are not replacements for the above measures or for good internal practices, they can help provide additional layers of security in the event of an employee mishap.
Recovering From Data Breaches
Even with a culture of cybersecurity awareness, data breaches may still occur. To err is human; and even if it wasn’t, as cybercriminals continue to get more creative with cutting-edge technological tools like AI, it may be that a cybercriminal will slip into your systems regardless. The cybercriminal playbook is constantly evolving, and corporations like yours are keeping up as best they can, but you have to prepare for the possibility that a threat actor will be one step ahead.
Developing a comprehensive data breach recovery plan is, therefore, necessary to mitigate damage and reinstate protections after an incursion. When creating your data breach recovery plan, include these four considerations:
- Assess and seal vulnerabilities: Having a procedure in place to assess the impact of a suspected breach, quarantining off unwanted access to company systems, and repairing the damage done as quickly as possible is key.
- Mobilize data breach response teams: These are employees that you have pre-selected who are aware of your protocols regarding a breach, and have the knowledge to enact them quickly.
- Communication plans: Have plans in place to reach out to affected parties, external stakeholders, and internal employees. Be prepared to explain what occurred, why, and what measures your company is taking to prevent it from happening again. Having a template of this drafted before an incident occurs allows you to ship it out as quickly as possible.
- Documentation procedures: Even in the event a breach is caught before serious damage is inflicted, having procedures in place to record incidents and the measures taken to correct them displays both commitment to safety and regulation compliance.
With a culture of cybersecurity awareness and a thorough plan for data breach response, you’ll be well-prepared to prevent data breaches, mitigate cyber threats, and minimize their damage.