When it comes to cybersecurity, the best defence is a good offence.
Here are six tips that can help you mitigate the impact of an attack on you.
Cybercrime has become a global epidemic and shows no signs of slowing down. Indeed, the latest research from IBM and the Ponemon Institute found that the average cost of a data breach is $3.9 million and that it takes 279 days on average to identify and contain a breach—279 days!
Statistically speaking, without the right people, processes, and technology in play, your networks are likely to have been compromised already—and you may not even know it. And we do mean “you.”
As with many things in life, when it comes to cybersecurity, the best defence is a good offence. Don’t wait for the attack; take a threat-focused approach to defending yourself and find trouble before trouble finds you.
Here are six tips that can help you better prepare, prevent, and minimise the damage from a cybersecurity attack and get back to business as soon as possible:
1. Raise awareness. It’s important for everyone in the organisation to be savvy and alert about security issues. This means watching for phishing scams sent through email and messaging apps that appear genuine but are actually attempts to retrieve credentials or sensitive data or release malware into the system.
2. Be ready to document everything you know and everything you do. Many countries and industries have regulations and other laws that require reporting unauthorised network access or data breaches. Documenting what happened and each remediation step is a necessary part of preparing for that reporting. It also allows you to do a post mortem and ask, “What can we do better or different in the future to minimise our risk of another breach?”
3. Follow the 3-2-1 rule. The most significant difference between those who end up having to pay a ransom vs. those who don’t is their backups. Many companies take it for granted that their data is backed up regularly, and they learn otherwise when they need to do a restore. In the case of ransomware, it’s important to distinguish between data synchronisation in the cloud and a valid backup. In the former scenario, infected data sets can be uploaded to the cloud and can overwrite good data. With a true backup, which follows the 3-2-1 backup rule, you’ll avoid this problem. The 3-2-1 backup rule means you should have three copies of your data and store the copies on two different media, and keep one backup copy offsite.
4. Purchase a Cyber Insurance policy. If you do experience a cyber breach, a solid Cyber insurance policy will cover your losses and costs to repair the damage.
5. Isolate the problem. Make sure that infected devices are taken off the network and shut down whenever possible until they can be diagnosed. The longer the infected machine remains online, the more potential it has to affect others and exacerbate the situation.
6. Lockout further damage. If personal or company identity data is stolen, immediately notify your bank or your customer’s bank, credit card companies, and credit monitoring agencies. This will limit the thieves’ ability to continue using the stolen data.
As we continue to become more reliant on technology, cybercrime will continue to rise. Start being proactive about your cybersecurity now!
If you would like any more information, help or advice on this matter, call Blutone on 1300 660 139, and we'll be happy to help.
