Industry Insights
How to ensure effective cyber security at your organization
How to ensure effective cyber security at your organization
In our increasingly connected world, cybersecurity has become essential for organizations facing the growing risks of cyber threats and data breaches
While robust cybersecurity programs, policies, and technologies are critical, they are not enough on their own. Strong organizational leadership and a security-minded culture are vital to sustaining an effective cybersecurity program.
Leadership and culture
Leadership plays an important role in ensuring the cybersecurity of an organization, leading by example and thereby demonstrating its commitment to making security a top priority. There must also be a real commitment to investing in security initiatives, particularly in training and technology, to support teams in mitigating security threats in an ever-evolving risk landscape.
Regarding culture, as the late Peter Drucker stated, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast”, which applies to cybersecurity too. A positive culture, which values security, will motivate employees to be much more aware and proactive in reporting and responding to potential security incidents. Whereas a negative or indifferent culture creates an environment where cybersecurity is not taken seriously and can lead to damaging results when cyberattacks do occur.
Open communications
Leaders can also support a positive culture by promoting transparency and open communication relating to cyber security. This is particularly relevant when incidents do occur, and even if the incident was caused by the actions of an employee. Leadership needs to ensure that there is an environment where employees are encouraged to report an incident as soon as possible without fear of reprisal, which could prevent an incident from escalating.
Awareness
Given that over 80% of breaches in the past year involved the human element, having leadership promote an ongoing program of training and awareness is critical. Effective cybersecurity training should provide practical and relevant skills to employees on how to identify and respond to security threats. Apart from formal training, regular awareness should be provided on various cybersecurity topics such as social engineering, phishing, and other online threats.
Furthermore, organizations will benefit from applying best practices to support their cybersecurity programs. This would include performing regular assessments of their cybersecurity to help identify vulnerabilities and areas of improvement. In order to ensure a robust cybersecurity program, ongoing monitoring of logs can help identify issues, and applying tested incident response plans can mitigate the damage that a cyber incident could have to the organization. If the worst-case scenario does come to bear, it is important that a tested business continuity plan is ready to be implemented, so that the organization can continue to operate after a damaging incident.
Driving a successful security program
At OMMAX, we understand the importance of providing a cybersecurity strategy that meets the strategic needs of- and enables organizations to maintain a positive cybersecurity culture. We can support you in identifying your current security maturity and will provide a roadmap and plan to ensure that all aspects of cybersecurity work in cohesion. Starting with your people, to advising you on how to apply appropriate processes and technology which will help protect your organization from the damages caused by cyber threats. Contact our author Erik to learn more.
