Strengthening Security for a Future-Ready Organisation

Before ramping up your cybersecurity, you first need to assess the measures you currently have in place – then you can discover where your vulnerabilities lie. Whether it’s a hasty rollout of a bring your own device (BYOD) policy, insufficient compliance checks, or incorrect file sharing, once you understand the weak links in the security chain, you can work on fixing them. This should involve taking inventory of the data your organisation collects, stores, and processes. Gaining in-depth knowledge of what you need to prioritise security-wise will enable you to create cybersecurity measures that align with your business needs.

With cybersecurity attacks on the rise, it’s crucial to have a plan of what to do if your organisation is impacted. This should be written out and be clear on what protocols to follow, what steps certain employees need to take, who should be notified (and what manner of communication to use when notifying them), and if and when you require external assistance. A swift response is essential and having a defined incident response plan to follow in the moment will save time and help you avoid missteps in those first critical moments. Provide employees with a paper copy and make sure they keep it at home when working remotely so everyone is always prepared.

Every account used by your organisation should use multi-factor authentication (MFA). Requiring at least two verification factors before allowing access is one of the most effective ways of ramping up your cybersecurity. With 81% of data breaches occurring due to weak or stolen credentials, it pays to implement MFA as a company-wide measure. And employees must be required to use MFA under BYOD policies.

As technology rapidly advances, cybercriminals are constantly evolving to stay one step ahead. To ensure you’re prepared for – and able to defend against – them, you need to be up to date on current scams. Phishing emails are the most common attacks on organisations, enabling hackers to download malware onto your system after an employee clicks on a fake link. Employees who have payment authorisation are especially vulnerable from attackers that can infiltrate their email inbox, then create invoices that will reroute money to them. Be aware that you are more vulnerable to scams if you have employees working remotely, so make sure each device used across the organisation is secure and that security systems are agile for swift defence.

So often, cybersecurity training consists of a couple hours and is viewed as a waste of time by employees. And they’re right – simply training to ‘check boxes’ is not going to demonstrate how important cybersecurity is, not just for the organisation as a whole, but every employee within it. Courses focussed on specific areas, such as phishing, are far more effective. You can also carry out simulations, so your people can pinpoint areas they need to improve upon, as well as potential outcomes if they don’t. When your employees are alert to risks, and understand what to do if an attack occurs, they act as an additional barrier for the organisation.

Video-teleconferencing (VTC) platforms are used more than ever, following the rise in remote working brought on by COVID-19. This has exposed another vulnerability for hackers to exploit: VTC hijacking or so-called ‘Zoom-bombing’, where malicious actors disrupt a call with offensive images or threatening language. Zoom-bombing has become so prevalent that the FBI has issued an official warning. To prevent this, make sure every meeting is private, only share the link to the meeting guests, set up a password to enable access, and lock the meeting once it starts. Set up a traditional conference call when the meeting is especially confidential or sensitive.

While it’s crucial to have people who have the tech skills to predict, detect, prevent, and respond to cybersecurity attacks, soft skills are essential in developing a well-rounded, future-ready workforce. Those who are skilled in communication can make complex processes comprehensible, improving training effectiveness and equipping each employee with the right tools. Expertise in human-computer interaction will enable more precise risk prevention and prevention, as well as establish more robust systems.

The cybersecurity landscape is ever evolving, and organisations must adapt swiftly in order stay ahead. We understand that to remain future-ready, you need the right people, with the right skills, at the right time. You can leverage the deep cybersecurity expertise of our multi-skilled tech talent to develop next-level processes and systems to take your business forward.

Reach out to us. Together, let’s develop a smarter tomorrow.