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ISMS provides a holistic approach to managing the information systems within an organizations. This offers several benefits to the firm.
An information security management system not only focuses on maximising information security, but it also aims to achieve an organization’s desirable state of information security. Understanding attacks is the key to preventing them. In this blog, we look at the top five cybersecurity risks facing organizations today and explain how you can prevent them.
Top 5 Cybersecurity Risks Faced by Organizations
The following are the top 5 cybersecurity risks that organizations deal with, and how you can prevent viruses and malicious code through these steps are mentioned below-
- Poor Patch Management- Patch management is a crucial part of cybersecurity. A patch is an update to an application or a piece of software that fixes vulnerabilities and bugs. When a new patch is released, organizations must apply it promptly. That’s because the vulnerability is then made public, giving cyber criminals the opportunity to exploit the weaknesses. However, organizations would create a patch management programme to ensure that patches are applied straight away. This process ensures that the person responsible for managing the application or software is notified when a patch is released.
- Phishing- Phishing is the cheapest and lowest-tech method of data compromise. It’s a kind of fraud, and it all starts with a devious email that at first glance looks like an actual message from some trustworthy organization. The emails are luring, and most of the time, they tell people that they have won something or their account has a problem and they need to log in to see the issue. It then asks them to click on a certain link and give personal details. Email systems are increasingly able to detect malicious emails, but the tactics of cyber criminals move with the times. Therefore, fake messages constantly appear in users’ inboxes. Another way organizations can protect employee accounts is by implementing MFA, or multi-factor authentication. This is a security system where people have to enter not only a password but also a second form of information to log on. Commonly, that will be a one-time code sent to their phone, but more advanced authentication systems require people to use biometric details such as a fingerprint or retinal scan.
- Ransomware- Ransomware is the fastest-growing threat that organisations face. It’s a type of malware that encrypts files, preventing the victim from accessing their systems. The attackers then send a ransom note demanding money typically to be paid in bitcoin, for the return of the information. These types of attacks have been hugely popular among cyber criminal gangs, because the malware is cheap to purchase, and can be easily planted on organizations’ systems through phishing emails and exploiting system vulnerabilities. Another benefit for cyber criminals is how willing most victims are to meet the ransom demand. You can see the victims’ reasoning: they need access to their files to operate, and if they’re locked out of those files, a payment is the simplest way to get back to work.
Mitigation of the ransomware risk for an organisation requires addressing both the prevention and response to this threat. By implementing controls to protect against phishing and system vulnerabilities using recommendations covered in this blog, one will reduce the risk of a ransomware infection.
Of course, no defence is completely foolproof. That’s why all organizations should periodically back up sensitive information on an external server. If an organization then falls victim to a ransomware attack, it can simply restore its information without having to make deals with criminal hackers.
- Weak Passwords– For all the advances that organizations have made in securing their systems, password practices remain a major issue. Most accounts are secured only with a username and a password, and if a malicious actor is able to compromise those details, then they can do some serious damage. Cyber security experts have traditionally advised people to create passwords that incorporate letters, numbers and special characters. However, this inevitably leads to standard passwords with a string of characters at the end, which somewhat defeats the effectiveness of the advice. More recent guidance suggests that passwords can be strengthened simply by making them longer. The more letters there are in a password, the more potential combinations there are.
- Malware- While ransomware is the most attention-grabbing malware variant, there are many others that your organization should know about. There are several types of malware; it comes in many forms and does different nefarious things. In contrast, spyware tracks a user’s Internet activities and collects information that the user is typing into the form, such as their usernames and passwords. This information can then be sold on the dark web by whoever placed the malware and lead to accounts being compromised.
Antimalware software should be installed in organizations, and scans should be conducted regularly to avoid malicious software infection. Malware often finds its way onto devices through poisoned attachments. Employees should have staff awareness training that will enable them to understand the risk of downloading from untrusted sources.
How Can Organizations Fight Back Against Cyber Crime Through ISMS?
When organizations invest in an ISMS, they automatically increase their level of defence against threats. The number of security incidents that will then occur, such as cyberattacks, is reduced, leading to minimal disruptions and less downtime, which are among the key features for business continuity.
- Reduces Costs- An Information security management system software provides a comprehensive risk assessment of all the assets. This helps organizations in prioritizing the highest-risk assets to avoid indiscriminate spending on unwarranted defences and provides a targeted approach toward securing them. This structured approach, with less downtime due to a reduction in security incidents, cuts an organization’s overall expenditure considerably.
- Enhances Company Culture- ISMS provides an all-inclusive approach to security and asset management throughout the organization, not limited to IT security. It encourages all employees to understand the risks tied to information assets and adopt security best practices as part of their daily routines.
- Regulatory Compliance- ISMS helps organizations move towards meeting all regulatory requirements and contractual obligations while offering a better understanding of legalities related to information systems. Since the infringement of legal regulations comes with hefty fines, having an ISMS will be very important in highly regulated industries with critical infrastructures, such as finance or healthcare.
- Adapts to Emerging Threats– The threats to security are changing all the time. An ISMS helps organizations prepare and adapt to newer threats and the ever-changing demands of the security landscape.
Conclusion
An effective ISMS not only identifies risk factors but also provides satisfactory measures to effectively mitigate and combat them. All employees should undergo regular training in security awareness. Along with data access monitoring, the company should track logins and authentications and maintain a record of them for further investigation. Before implementing an ISMS, a bird’s eye view of the organizational operations, tools, and systems related to information security management would help organizations to understand business and security requirements. The study of how the ISO 27001 framework can assist in data protection and who are the personnel involved in executing the ISMS also helps.
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