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Suppose you are a business owner, a state/county/city elected official, or another organization leader. In that case, you likely are getting more nervous with every story you hear about another cyber security hack or ransomware attack on the many companies, governments, and other organizations that happen every single day. If you aren’t, what’s wrong with you? Get your head out of the sand because you should be scared to death!
So, what can you do? Hiding your head in the sand is out of the question (see paragraph above). Denial is never an option. NO ONE is safe from cyber attacks. Even if you believe that you’re below the radar of a targeted attack, your organization is still at risk of one of your employees making a simple mistake and clicking on a phishing link.
You need employees. So, getting rid of all your people (including yourself) is not an option.
There are three things every organization needs to ensure the best level of cyber security: (1) a clear understanding of your environment, (2) up-to-date technical tools, and (3) a trained workforce.
The first step requires having a comprehensive “vulnerability and threat evaluation” of your network. This process begins with an evaluation of all technical tools, the network architecture, and outdated software (e.g., anti-virus, operating systems). It also involves an investigation to determine if malware or unauthorized guests are already present in your system. It also includes an evaluation of your physical security (e.g., are server room doors locked with access control?) and policies (e.g., password management, bring-your-own-device, access management, etc.). Most importantly, it includes an evaluation of your employees’ understanding of cyber security and the amount of training they receive.
The next step is to take that information and decide with your cyber security team what you need to change. This is “transformation management”. This will include the addition or upgrade of technical tools (patching, network monitoring, endpoint protection, anti-virus), implementing or changing policies to provide better guidance by your management priorities, and training for your employees.
Once you go through the transformation phase, you cannot just “set it and forget it”. Cybers ecurity is an ongoing endeavor. It is not a destiny. It is a journey. As cyber criminals become more sophisticated in their attacks, cyber security teams must keep up by developing stronger technical tools to prevent attacks, continually monitoring to detect intrusion, stopping attacks as early as possible, mitigating damage, and recovering quickly. This is the phase in which you need a “Chief Information Security Officer” (or Virtual CISO) to manage network monitoring and analysis, implement ongoing training, and ensure software updates are made as soon as they become available.
Lastly, no one can guarantee you will never experience a cyber breach. Therefore, you must prepare by developing an incident response plan which will ensure your operations are back up and running as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Whether you are a business, a public organization (i.e., county government, sheriff’s office, county jail, etc.), or a non-profit, you are at risk of a cyber incident whether through malicious activity or negligence. The most responsible course of action to ensure continued operation in any scenario is to be proactive.
At Commonwealth Sentinel, we can assess your existing IT security and collaborate with your team to enhance it. We can also provide a complete source of services. At Commonwealth Sentinel, we stay focused on cyber security so you can focus on other things. Contact us today or sign up for a free consultation.
At Commonwealth Sentinel, we stay focused on cyber security so you can focus on other things.