In today's data-sensitive world, large corporations and small businesses alike are constantly at risk of data breaches and cyber-attacks. The importance of security posture, or your company's ability to protect against such attacks, cannot be overstated. To avoid these risks and ensure your organization's security posture, here are six ways you can improve your organization's security.
1. Regularly Evaluate Your Security Protocols
Have a regular schedule for evaluating your security posture. These evaluations must be more in-depth than your daily framework. A great way to do this effectively is by ensuring you can examine and analyze your most significant vulnerabilities quickly and without disrupting your system. It would help to organize these risks according to their priority level, so your IT team can address them effectively.
2. Train Your Employees
Most data breaches happen because employees are not adequately trained in security protocols. Employees should know their individual roles in maintaining cyber security. Give your staff tools and resources to stay up-to-date on the latest security trends. Additionally, employees should be periodically tested on their knowledge of security practices through simulated phishing attacks or other security awareness training.
3. Develop a Cybersecurity Framework
A robust security framework fortifies your data against breaches and cyber attacks. Some examples of popular cybersecurity frameworks include the NIST Cybersecurity Framework, ISO/IEC 27001, CIS Controls, and data security posture management (DSPM). With DSPM, organizations can monitor their entire network, including cloud and mobile devices, to ensure all data is secure.
With this framework, organizations can maintain proper cybersecurity measures and ensure their employees comply with the framework's guidelines. Tailor the framework to suit your organization's specific needs, ensuring all critical areas of security are addressed.
4. Implement Multi-Factor Authentication
Passwords and usernames are often the only obstacles to unauthorized access to an organization's systems, and these barriers can easily be overcome. Implement a robust access control system that includes strong authentication mechanisms like multi-factor authentication (MFA) and least privilege principles.
Regularly review and update user access rights to ensure that employees have access only to the resources necessary to perform their roles. MFA significantly reduces the risk of account compromise, as it becomes nearly impossible for attackers to gain access without possessing multiple authentication factors.
5. Have a Data Backup and Recovery Plan
Even when an organization has implemented the best security measures, incidents can still occur. In the event of a data breach or ransomware attack, the organization can still resume normal operations as soon as possible. Having a data backup and recovery plan involves:
- Determining a secure storage location for backups
- Setting up a backup schedule
- Regularly testing the restoration process
It is important to note that data backup should be conducted using offline storage methods or cloud backups with encryption protection. A disaster recovery plan (DRP) outlines methods for restoring the systems and resources after an incident or a disaster.
6. Keep Updating Your Software
Most software you use in your organization is updated regularly as a security measure to ensure that hackers cannot access client's information through loopholes. You can keep your system safe by ensuring that you update the new software on time. Software updates usually come with new protocols embedded that address recent threats that various companies identify that put their users at risk. They also update restrictions in the software, so unauthorized persons cannot install other software that can harm your system.
Endnote
Security of your organization should always remain a priority. You can achieve this by following the above tips points. Regularly evaluate your security protocols, develop a cybersecurity framework, train employees on security practices, implement multi-factor authentication and data backup/recovery plans, and keep software up-to-date to reduce the risk of data breaches and other cyber-attacks.