There has been a year-on-year increase in vulnerabilities. Cybersecurity experts estimate that 43% of all cyber-attacks are against small businesses with attackers targeting all sectors including education, retail and wholesale, professional, consumer services, the entertainment industry (except for your very secure Jackpot Capital casino login), and any business that sees money flowing to and from the business’s accounts.
The attacks are becoming ever more sophisticated. If your business has an online presence, the most effective way to protect yourself is to consult with a cybersecurity consulting firm.
Today, cybercriminals will try to attack your website, data storage, and financial transactions in a variety of ways.
Ransomware attacks are a significant threat. In the first half of 2023, it’s estimated that businesses worldwide made over $449.1 million in cryptocurrency payments to ransomware hackers who had encrypted the victim’s data and demanded payment in exchange for the decryption key.
Phishing attacks involve tricking individuals into providing usernames, financial data, or passwords by pretending to be a trustworthy entity. For instance, a phishing email may request that the recipient “confirm” their bank password by clicking on the phishing email’s link and submitting the password. The link leads to a false site and once they enter the password, the hacker has access to the victim’s bank details.
The damage that this can cause to a business whose bank details are exposed is unlimited. The hackers can also use phishing emails to deceive employees into transferring funds or disclosing additional types of sensitive information.
Hackers try to obtain sensitive information through unauthorized access to networks or databases. They then sell the data on the dark web or use it for malicious purposes.
Businesses are at risk of malicious or negligent actions by employees who release sensitive data. These risks can include sabotage, intentional data theft, or unintentional actions that compromise security.
Why might your firm need a cybersecurity consultant? Cybersecurity consultants help shore up the security of an organization in a number of ways.
The cybersecurity consultant will analyze the IT infrastructure and the business processes to determine potential points of weakness. The consultant will conduct regular risk assessments to identify potential vulnerabilities and threats.
One of the main tasks of a cybersecurity consultant is to perform regular security audits so that your organization’s processes and systems comply with industry regulations and standards. This ensures that the business is compliant with relevant regulations and data protection laws.
You’ll need to work with your cybersecurity consultant to develop and implement comprehensive security procedures and policies as they relate to the specific needs of your organization. This includes educating employees on security best practices and creating awareness about potential risks.
The cybersecurity consultant will assist your organization in the development of incident response plans so that you can effectively handle and mitigate security incidents. This will include conducting exercises with your staff to test the organization's response to various cybersecurity scenarios.
It will be necessary to evaluate and enhance the overall security architecture of the organization. Together with the cybersecurity consultants you will need to examine your network design, your infrastructure, and the organization’s application security. This will lead to recommendations for enhancing security technologies and solutions and their implementation.
One of the most important tasks of a cybersecurity consultant is to provide training programs. These should educate employees about cybersecurity threats, social engineering tactics, and how to recognize and respond to potential security incidents.
Stanford University researchers found that approximately 88% of all data breaches are due to employee negligence. Sometimes this is deliberate but, overwhelmingly, this negligence is the result of human error.
Cybersecurity consultants can implement vulnerability management programs that make it easier to identify and address vulnerabilities in the organization's systems and software. This allows the consultant to advise on software updates and patch management so that systems stay secure.
The cybersecurity consultant will be responsible for setting up monitoring systems. These can detect and respond to suspicious activities in real-time. Furthermore, they include intrusion detection and prevention systems that can proactively identify and mitigate security threats.
If your business interfaces with third-party vendors and partners, including with online e-banking services, you’ll want your cybersecurity team to assess and manage the security risks that are associated with those entities. This can ensure the third-party contacts have proper protection.
All of the tasks up until now aren’t worth the paper that they are useless unless your IT staff – preferably your entire staff – have adequate preparation. Make sure they can handle security-related tasks and are up-to-date on the latest cybersecurity threats and technologies. This must be undertaken continually with, preferably, monthly (if not more often) meetings.
Your cybersecurity team should be regularly reviewing and updating all security measures. This way your organization can adapt to evolving threats and know about emerging cybersecurity technologies and trends.
Through collaboration between your organization and professional cybersecurity advisors, you can keep your organization resilient in the ever-changing landscape of cyber threats.
