Facing Advanced Cybersecurity Threats

Why You Need an Expert Consultant

With cybersecurity threats continuously on the rise, protecting your business should be among your top priorities. Not only can investing in a quality cybersecurity strategy ensure your company’s sensitive data is secure, but it also boosts your business reputation as it shows your customers they can trust their personal information to be kept safe as well.

However, as cyberthreats evolve and become more sophisticated, the need for more advanced cybersecurity protocols becomes imperative. This is where a security consultant can come in handy. These consultants bring a wealth of knowledge along with specialized skills that can help you better assess risks and equip your company with the knowledge and tools it needs to stay safe and secure.

Modern Cybersecurity Threats: What You Need to Know

As our world becomes more digitally connected, cybersecurity threats increase, as well as become more frequent — and more devastating. One of the first steps in protecting your business is being aware of these threats and knowing what potential risks you could be facing.

Some of today’s most common cybersecurity threats include malware, phishing attacks, DDoS attacks, insider threats, weak password protocols, and social engineering attacks. To put this into better perspective, here are some examples of top cybersecurity threats that have significantly impacted modern businesses and altered the IT landscape:

• Microsoft Exchange breach: In January 2021, hackers took advantage of multiple vulnerabilities to access Microsoft’s on-premises Exchange servers. This resulted in a number of email accounts being compromised as well as a malware installation that facilitated access to victim environments.
• Twitch breach: The popular gaming platform Twitch was also breached in 2021, which resulted in streamers’ financial earnings and sensitive business data being leaked, including 125 GB of data.
• SolarWinds Orion breach: One of the largest attacks of 2020 was the breach of SolarWinds, a US IT company. The hackers added malicious code to the company’s software system, Orion, using a supply chain attack. When SolarWinds then sent out a software update, it resulted in 18,000 customers installing the malicious code. As a result, the hackers were able to spy on members of the US Government, an elite cybersecurity business called FireEye, and more than 30,000 other private and public organizations were compromised.

As you can imagine, large companies like these already have cybersecurity measures in place, which shows just how important it is to continually upgrade security protocols and ensure you’re using the most advanced methods possible. Ultimately, even the smallest vulnerability can turn into a significant loss.

Creating a Security Culture to Boost Cyber-Defenses

To truly protect your company from the most advanced cyberthreats that businesses face today, it’s necessary to create a security culture. This means shifting from having a simple security compliance checklist that you follow to deeply rooting a security mindset within your organization’s ethos. In other words, each and every employee must be thoroughly trained to understand security risks and how to mitigate them to become a guardian against threats.

However, achieving a security culture requires a lot of work, which is why working with a consultant can help. You’ll need to focus on security awareness training and develop security incident response protocols, as well as implement a number of other strategies. Some of the cybersecurity trends all business owners should be accounting for today include zero-trust architecture, AI usage, advanced device protection, multi-factor authentication, data encryption, VPNs, and firewall protection.

Overall, the vulnerability of your business and its sensitive data is influenced by how aware and proactive your employees are about preventing potential cybersecurity risks.

How a Cybersecurity Consultant Can Help

Think of cybersecurity consultants as a digital bodyguard. They’re fully equipped with the knowledge to assess your company’s vulnerabilities, provide guidance and best practices, help you develop the right security strategies for your business needs, and encourage you and your staff to be more proactive.

A consultant will work with you to develop a comprehensive strategy suited to your organization’s specific cybersecurity needs, ensuring you’re thoroughly protected. They can also show you how best to respond to cybersecurity incidents and what you need to do to ensure compliance with data protection regulations and standards.

Further, a consultant can even help you develop a quality cybersecurity training and awareness program so that your employees can act as the first line of defense against threats. This can include teaching your staff best practices for email security, password management, how to identify potential scams or threats, and teaching them safer browsing habits.

Security consultants can also provide ongoing monitoring and maintenance to ensure the effectiveness of implemented measures. Again, to continuously protect against evolving threats, your business must regularly audit your security protocols and update them as needed, which is a service that consultants can provide so you can focus on other important business tasks.

Finding the Right Consultant For Your Business

When it comes to choosing a consultant, you want to make sure you are investing in the right firm or individual with all the necessary skills. Start by assessing your organization’s specific needs then research and evaluate reputable consulting firms to find one that aligns with your company’s needs. Check references, case studies, their approach, and methodology; be sure they have the right certifications and credentials, such as CEH, CISM, and CISSP.

When setting up an initial meeting with the firm or individual to see if they are right for your business, it’s also important to check that they have good IT consulting skills, in addition to cybersecurity knowledge. This includes having in-depth technical knowledge and industry experience, critical thinking skills to help them troubleshoot security problems, and good communication skills. Communication skills are important when hiring a consultant because they need to be good at active listening to understand your organization’s needs as well as being able to collaborate with you and your teams effectively to develop a comprehensive cybersecurity plan. It’s essential that they understand the systems they intend to protect.

Conclusion

As a business owner, there are likely a million other things that pull your focus, so hiring a consultant can help bring your company the knowledge and tools it needs without taking up more of your time. When you partner with a trusted cybersecurity firm, you can rest easy knowing your business is in good hands and will be thoroughly protected against future threats.

By Indiana Lee, BOSS contributor