Sunday, 13 August 2017 Blog ehdf

Staying Ahead of Cyber-Threats

Today, organizations need to be vigilant and prepared in order to protect their employees, customers and partners from cyber-attacks, especially at a time when cyber security is such a daunting problem. However, most of them do not have the in-house expertise and capability to implement robust cyber security solutions. This is where Managed Security Service Providers (MSSP) comes in. By partnering with an MSSP, they can reap the benefits of having access to a large array of security solutions and experts that otherwise may not have been available in-house. In addition, the unique OPEX based approach passes on tangible cost benefits when planning to enhance their security posture. They are also able to eliminate the need for lengthy evaluation and procurement cycles and enjoy ongoing flexible monthly based payment plans.

Staying ahead of threats

The cyber criminal community has evolved from pranksters and organized gangs to nation-states and hacktivist groups whose primary results have been increased costs and lost productivity. As enterprises and governments connect literally everything to the Internet, the size of their attack surface has grown, opening more opportunities for cyber criminals.

Cyber attacks are not isolated incidents anymore. The recent WannaCry ransomware attack proves that these types of crimes can transcend borders and pose an enormous international threat. Every time you connect online, you are vulnerable to the schemes of cyber criminals that are looking for their next financial gain. We highly recommend partnering with an experienced Managed Security Services Provider (MSSP). A well experienced MSSP is able to gain a comprehensive understanding of your present security systems, identify potential vulnerabilities, and take the appropriate actions to minimize these exposures.

Given the current state of trends, many large organizations are also looking to set-up and operate their own Security Operations Centre (SOC). However, this can be a very expensive proposition. This has compelled many MSSP’s like eHDF to launch a SOC.

Securing data is challenging!

Technology is clearly one of the important aspects of running a business in today’s day and age. However, along with the profits gained, the dependence on large amounts of data being collected, stored and processed across the network, servers, devices, and databases is also immense. It is therefore critical to secure this data for business continuity.

More organizations are moving into the Cloud for their business growth and ease of processes. This bring along its own set of security issues and they are struggling to secure their digital assets. The initial challenge is faced during the Cloud adoption process as different applications demand varied levels of security requirements. It is therefore important for organizations and the IT teams, both internal and external (when availing of the services of Service Providers) to consider the type of information and applications that are being moved to the Cloud and must be given due focus just as those being given on premise.

Most organizations are not equipped to tackle emergencies, either due to lack of trained security response experts, lack of adequate preparedness to counter a cyberattack, and most importantly, the shortfalls of being capable of analyzing and clearing up the effects of cyberattacks.

For security solutions to be effective, organizations must be in a strong position to detect and mitigate threats and attacks in real time. The IT infrastructure required for this is mostly out of budget range for most organizations. This has brought about a strong move towards organizations now availing of Managed Security Service Providers who are highly capable of implementing, managing and maintaining the security requirements.

Essential strategies to put in place

Some of the essential strategies that organizations must have in place to ensure data protection include:

Disaster Recovery (DR) Planning: It is important for CIOs to ensure that a strong DR plan must assess the data elements that need to be backed-up and recovered before data loss can have a negative impact on their business. This must be conducted on a regular basis and will help to position them for faster recovery at the time of any cyber security attack or disaster.

Educating employees: Cyber security is in the hands of every employee, and, it is critical that they understand the importance of remaining secure, both knowingly as well as unknowingly. Regular training and communications enables a wider network of knowledgeable employees.

Hire qualified experts/Service Providers: In its current state, cyber security requires highly qualified professionals to tackle the needs. Hiring the right staff with adequate experience is a valuable decision. However, the constant changing needs of organizations now calls for partnering with specialized MSSP who can incorporate advanced analytics and more powerful tools for detecting, investigating, and managing increasingly dynamic threats across an expanding range of attack vectors.