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EDITOR’S QUESTION
MAYLEEN
BYWATER,
SENIOR PRODUCT
MANAGER FOR
CLOUD SECURITY
SOLUTIONS, VOX
W
hile the growing number and
complexity of cybersecurity
threats toward business, and
the ensuing breaches, continue to make
headlines around the world, the news
coverage of the resulting attacks often tend
to focus on larger corporations that are
household names.
a comprehensive risk assessment, the
setting of guidelines and procedures, who
manages security responsibilities, who has
access to information, data governance,
setting up training and awareness
programmes for staff and ensuring overall
regulatory compliance.
The email threat
The reality, however, is that all businesses are
at risk, regardless of their size, popularity or
how much they make.
As long as a business has confidential
customer records or financial information
stored on their network, they are a
cybercrime target.
Hackers know how to exploit any and all
weaknesses, and organisations need to take
a 360-degree approach to security if they
are to sufficiently protect themselves and
their data. Here are four best practices when
it comes to data security:
Policies and procedures
The starting point for any organisation
has to be setting the right policies and
standards that makes security by default
a priority. This encompasses conducting
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The latest threats don’t target networks,
but rather emails, to which almost every
company employee has access. With
improvements in security technology,
humans have been left behind as the most
vulnerable of gatekeepers.
With a growing number of employees
preferring to work from home or remotely, or
by using their own devices (laptops, tablets,
smartphones and other smart devices),
companies need to have a firm grasp of the
endpoints that are accessing their network
and data.
They need to carefully control user
management, ensure these devices are
secured, as well as have an understanding of
which users have permission to access and
modify that data. Your security should be
able to detect and take immediate action
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if an employee tries to connect an infected
device to your network.
Backup and business continuity
Despite all these precautions, security is still
not foolproof. If any of these defences are
compromised and you don’t have a proper
backup system in place, you will not be able
to restore your business in a timely manner,
and risk suffering further damage to your
brand and reputation.
Your business could even end up being held
liable if it was found that it did not have
the proper systems and procedures in place
to store, manage and safeguard customer
information and other personal data.
Skills, education and awareness
Lastly, however, it is important for companies
to remember that while they can spend
millions on network and data security
products and solutions, a human employee
that does not understand the security
posture or culture of an organisation remains
the biggest risk, as all it takes is a click on
the wrong link. They need to be continually
educated and brought into the fold to be
part of your security defence measures. n
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