As technology keeps advancing, so do cyber-attack risks. It has become more crucial for organizations and businesses to protect themselves from cyber threats. This is due to the fact that organizations now heavily depend on technology and generally keep their sensitive data in a digital format, thereby making it a target for cybercriminals.
Sensitive data attracts cybercriminals for espionage and financial gain, among other reasons. Meanwhile, the consequences of cyberattacks could be highly devastating, ranging from disrupting business to damaging reputation. However, this article contains certain cybersecurity measures that you can put in place to help you build a secure IT environment.
Carry Out an Information Security Risk Assessment
An information security risk assessment is one of the first things an organization is expected to put in place when assessing its cyber security posture. The assessment enables establishments to find out potential ways through which sensitive information could be exposed.
While the majority of organizations are vulnerable to the same types of weaknesses, like internal error or criminal hacking, each business is differently built. Meanwhile, the means through which those risks manifest tend to change, and some will have a higher problem compared to others.
Through the conduction of a risk assessment, it becomes possible for you to analyze and examine weaknesses in your processes, technologies, and policies. This information can then be used to place priority on those risks that are most vital to your organization and put in place the right controls to address every risk.
Prepare for Ransomware Attacks
Ransomware is one of the most pervasive threats establishments face. It is also among the more novel strategies. Compared to a lot of cyber attack forms, criminal hackers do not break in unnoticed and exfiltrate data secretly.
Rather, they encrypt the systems of victims’, hindering them from gaining access to sensitive files. Then, they leave a ransom note behind in which they ask for money to return the data.
The most suitable way to prepare for a ransomware attack is through the creation of offline backups of sensitive data and regularly updating those systems. The more vital the information and the more often it is utilized, the more frequently it should be backed up.
Moreover, organizations should make sure that backups are saved offline and that they are not overwriting the files they have previously saved.
While overwriting prevents the loss of progress peradventure a system crashes, it will not be helpful in ransomware attacks, since anything saved on an Internet-connected device can get infected.
Furthermore, bear in mind that offline backups should be kept in a different location, isolated from the files on a particular computer or server. They make sure that even after your systems have been encrypted, you have protected versions of the data that you can make use of.
Meanwhile, in a case where you experience a ransomware attack, you do not necessarily need to pay off the attackers, hiring that they will decrypt your systems. Rather, you can wipe off the affected systems and build them again in a protected environment.
Put in Place a Password Policy Policy
Password breaches are as easy as cyber-attacks happen. Cybercriminals do not have to buy any special equipment or spend time examining the systems of an organization. They only need to guess the password of an employee. That is a highly simple thing if you do not implement a password policy.
A password policy makes sure that employees make use of complicated passwords that can not be guessed easily. There is a traditional guidance that says passwords should be a minimum of eight letters long with a combination of numbers, special characters, and letters.
This usually leads to people adding an “@” with a few numbers at the end of their password, or using characters instead (for instance, an “0” replacing an “o”). Even though this makes passwords more difficult to guess, it also makes them more difficult to remember.
Nevertheless, in password creation, length is important. That is, every character you add should create one more element that should be guessed correctly. Employees can be protected in organizations by increasing the minimum character requirement and encouraging them to reconsider their approach to the creation of passwords.
A well-known strategy is to make use of a random selection of words. It is easier to recollect three words compared to an assortment of special characters within a passphrase. Besides, it is not likely that a cybercriminal would think to put together the correct three random words, and in the right order.
Two-Factor Authentication
A strong password highly solidifies the defenses of an organization. However, it is not foolproof. For instance, password breaches usually take place as a result of employees reusing the same password on various accounts. Hence, once one account is compromised, criminal hackers can make use of the same details elsewhere to have unauthorized access.
A bigger risk is scam emails, in which cyber criminals deceive people into handing their passwords over. However, organizations can address this through the implementation of MFA (multi-factor authentication). It is as well known as two-factor authentication.
With two-factor authentication, people enter a password as normal, but must also give a second piece of information that they have authorized access to the system. This can either be what you have (like a code sent to your phone) or what you are (like a fingerprint scan).
By doing this, you can reduce the risk of passwords being compromised. That is, an attacker may have your login details, but they still need more information to gain access to your account.
Although MFA is not foolproof, as there are ways through which criminal hackers can get the required information, it removes a significant threat and makes sure that only a password breach does not suffice in compromising your account.
Additionally, making use of a cloud-based spam filter is a cost-effective and comprehensive approach that can help to protect your establishment from disruptive spam and email-borne threats, while providing an easy implementation.
Cybersecurity
Attempts to steal important data are real threats. Although a business can not be entirely protected from such dangers, there are various cybersecurity measures you can put in place to bust online security threats.
Meanwhile, apart from providing your staff with adequate training. You should also keep your ears and eyes open to suspicious behavior on both your employees and outsiders with the aid of surveillance systems to find out people who have vested interests in your company.
