RiskXchange can pinpoint threats and improve your organisation’s entire cybersecurity program.
In today’s digital age, cybersecurity is THE most important part of protecting your data and private information. Cybersecurity protects all categories of data from damage to theft, and also helps build a wall of defence around an organisation’s entire network or system. Personally identifiable information (PII), data, protected health information (PHI), intellectual property, personal information, sensitive data, and governmental and industry information systems all come within the cybersecurity protection zone.
Without an effective cybersecurity program in place, organisations up and down the country will not be able to defend themselves against hacks, data breaches or ransomware. The widespread increase of cloud services and larger attack surfaces mean companies are now more susceptible to cybercrime. Both residual risk and inherent risk is increasing, therefore the need for tighter security and a robust cybersecurity program is paramount.
Cybersecurity 101
According to the National Cyber Security Centre in the UK, cybersecurity’s core function is to protect the devices we all use (smartphones, laptops, tablets and computers), and the services we access – both online and at work – from theft or damage. It’s also about preventing unauthorised access to the vast amounts of personal information we store on these devices, and online.
Cybersecurity is important
The NCSC adds that cybersecurity is important because smartphones, computers and the internet are now such a fundamental part of modern life, that it’s difficult to imagine how we’d function without them. From online banking and shopping, to email and social media, it’s more important than ever to stake steps that can prevent cyber criminals getting hold of our accounts, data, and devices.
Fundamentally, our society is becoming more and more technologically reliant and there are no signs that this trend will slow down over the coming weeks, months or years. Sensitive information like credit card information, bank account details and even identification documents are being stored on cloud storage services like Google Drive or Dropbox and are being left wide open to hackers.
Whether you are a private individual, small company or large multinational organisation, you use computer systems every day to navigate through life or business. Couple this with the rise in cloud services and the somewhat poor security measures surrounding them, Internet of Things (IoT), smartphones, laptops and tablets, there are now way more security threats than there were 10 years ago. These points alone only underscore the need to improve cybersecurity measures within any organisation around the world.
Educate staff on the importance of cybersecurity
Cyber threats can come in many guises and from all levels of an organisation. Educating staff on basic social engineering scams like phishing, and sophisticated cybersecurity attacks like ransomware attacks, or on malware designed to steal personal data or intellectual property is key to helping staff stay vigilant and notice the threats.
Security breaches regularly affect businesses all around the world, whether they are large or small, which can cause irreversible reputational damage to all involved. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other international laws mean that cybersecurity can no longer be ignored. They’ve helped create a standard to follow and improved cybersecurity measures worldwide.
Governments are now also placing more of an emphasis on cybercrime. GDPR has ensured organisations that operate in the EU abide by the following:
- Appoint a data-protection officer
- Communicate data breaches
- User consent needed to process information
- Anonymise data for privacy
Although the above-mentioned steps are currently operational in the Europe Union, there are also guidelines published in the United States which are used by all 50 states:
- Required to notify those affected as soon as possible
- Government must be notified as soon as possible
- Fines are applicable
Steps like these have led to the development of boards like the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) which has devised frameworks to help organisations understand potential security risks, improve cybersecurity and prevent attacks.
Protect your organisation against cybercrime
Here are five simple steps you can take to increase security and reduce the risk of cybercrime:
- Educate your entire organisation from the ground up about the risks of social engineering scams and malware.
- Monitor third-party and fourth-party vendor risk and continuously scan for data exposure and leak credentials.
- Invest in applications and tools that limit information loss.
- Reduce costs by automatically sending out things like vendor assessment questionnaires as part of an overall cyber security risk assessment strategy.
- Hire an external cybersecurity firm like RiskXchange to pinpoint threats and improve your organisation’s entire cybersecurity program.
Organisations should now ensure that their cybersecurity practices are sufficient enough to comply with GDPR and other regulations to prevent attacks.
How RiskXchange can help
RiskXchange is one of the firms leading the fight against cybercrime, coming up with novel solutions to everyday problems experienced at the hands of hackers. We are a respected provider of cybersecurity ratings and can fully assess potential threats to ensure your business is protected on all fronts.
With full visibility over your eco-systems’ entire attack surface in near real-time, you can regularly monitor and mitigate risks to prevent unnecessary exposures. Our passive data collection methods are effective and have no impact on your network performance. Using data-driven insights to prevent breaches is the best way to reduce an attack surface and prevent cyberattacks.
About RiskXchange
RiskXchange provides a powerful AI-assisted, yet simple automated and centralised 360-degree cybersecurity risk rating management approach. We generate objective and quantitative reporting on a company’s cyber security risk and performance, which enables organisations with evolving business requirements to conduct business securely in today’s open and collaborative digital world.
RiskXchange is an information security technology company, which helps companies of all sizes fight the threat of cyber threats by providing instant risk ratings for any company across the globe. RiskXchange was founded and is led by recognised experts within the security industry, who have held leading roles within companies such as IBM Security.
Find out more here.