Cyber risk readiness isn't a static state of being; it's an ongoing organizational journey that's informed by your company's unique cyber risk profile and the ever-changing threat landscape. As your business adopts new technologies and complex threats emerge, it will be all the more essential to adopt an agile approach to cyber risk readiness. Here's how you can continuously manage your organization's security preparedness as its needs change, and why stronger security in digital transformation is important.
Digital transformation and security: Why a fluid approach to cyber risk readiness is essential
The threat landscape is dynamic and ever-changing. Sophisticated new threats like supply chain attacks may emerge with little warning, and your organization must have the capacity to identify and manage the risks they represent. This is especially important for companies that embrace innovative technologies such as Internet of Things devices and 5G mobile edge computing (MEC). As more businesses are discovering, digital transformation and security measures are key to achieving their biggest, most ambitious goals for technology-enabled growth.
Maintaining a fluid, proactive approach to cyber risk can help you stay ahead of threats by preventing attacks or quickly detecting intrusions that may be underway. This kind of agility can also help you reduce the mean time to detect a breach, which could make a profound difference in your organization's ability to recover from one. According to IBM's Cost of a Data Breach Report 2020, the global average total cost of a data breach is $3.86 million. In addition, businesses that experience data breaches may also suffer legal repercussions and reputational damage. Ultimately, they could find themselves at a competitive disadvantage compared to companies that maintain high levels of cyber risk readiness.
Digital transformation security risks: How your organization can gain visibility into the threat landscape
As the threat landscape continues to evolve, you must have continuous visibility into relevant threat vectors, so you can properly protect your organization, your customers and your employees. You can begin building this capability by taking the following three steps:
1. Conduct a cyber security assessment
If you don't have a clear picture of all the threats you face or how you can best manage the risks they represent, you're not alone. Companies that maintain an agile approach to cyber risk readiness often conduct cyber security assessments for this very reason. An objective review of your current cyber security posture can help you understand your current cyber security maturity level and allow you to make better decisions about managing digital transformation security risks.
2. Create a cyber security response plan
Detecting a threat is only half the battle—you must also have a clear plan on how to respond when necessary. When an attack happens, your teams need to be able to quickly spring into action. When they have the tested and proven incident response procedures they need at the ready, they'll be able to more effectively protect the company and its assets. As a result, your organization will be able to recover more quickly and it will likely suffer less damage as well.
3. Conduct regular security awareness training
Malicious actors regularly target employees when staging attacks, whether through run-of-the-mill phishing techniques or through more sophisticated business email compromise scams. By regularly providing your employees with security awareness training, you can help them better identify threats and defend the company. Make sure to keep this training fresh and up to date so your teams are properly equipped to spot new threats as they emerge.
Digital transformation and security: How a partner can help your organization improve its cyber risk readiness
You may find it challenging to tackle all of the above steps, especially if your organization is in the midst of implementing digital transformation and security measures, thereby already experiencing considerable change. Or, you may not have all the internal expertise or resources you need to continually keep your cyber risk readiness aligned with your risk profile.
An experienced partner can help support you through your cyber risk readiness journey as your needs evolve. For example, a partner can provide cyber threat intelligence tools to help you prioritize security investments in alignment with your highest risk areas, continually optimizing those investments to safeguard critical assets as threats become more complex.
Your company should be able to access such tools and gain the guidance you need without having to increase your headcount. With these capabilities available on demand, you can more easily manage digital transformation security risks while preparing for technologies like mobile edge computing and 5G.
Discover how Verizon governance, risk and compliance services can help strengthen your security in digital transformation and help manage compliance.