If there’s anything to deduce
from the pattern of cybercrime victims in recent times, it should be that
startups can no longer bank on the “we’re not there yet” excuse to shrug off or
postpone security management. It is easy to empathize with them because all
along, we’ve been led to believe that cyber criminals only target bigger
companies. Sadly, this is far from the truth. Read on to know why your business
might be at stake as long as that misconception exists.
Technology-intensive startups are
learning the hard way that they are indeed potential targets for millions of
attackers looking for ways to make quick bucks off confidential information or
just intending to wreak havoc on infrastructure. No matter what the intent is,
an unguarded spot in your assets and networks can prove to be a major setback
for your emerging business. Native startups like Ola Cabs and Gaana.com were
basking in the glory of a fresh wave of patronage when both companies were
caught unawares by hackers. Loss of user credentials and user behavior
information were just one aspect of the price they paid for neglecting security
risk assessment. The real damage is always the loss of credibility and a
diminishing interest in what the company has to offer. The age of internet
business has the inherent risk of offending a huge portion of the target
audience owing to a seemingly minor security flaw.
Hacking entities are being managed
like any other business whose central goal is to maximize its return on
investment. Naturally, they would prefer the easier targets with long windows
of exposure to which they could latch on like a spile and drink up. With a lack
of the requisite IT resources and expertise for a holistic security set up,
startups and SMBs universally fit the bill.
One grave blunder that small
businesses and young tech companies make is relying on basic antivirus,
firewall and anti-spam software for their defense. Symantec recently made a
public confession that your antivirus is no longer relevant in the era of cloud
computing. Startups are reportedly the most common adopters of cloud-hosted
software and infrastructure for the sheer cost-efficiency and ease of integration
they offer. The best way to stay protected is by understanding the third party
vendor’s security policies and that of the channels leading back to your
internal networks.
Vigilant companies prefer a cloud service provider whose
security measures focus on data-centric defense rather than application-centric
defense. Encryption is the most widely-acknowledged safeguard especially for
companies that manage raw, big data. A start-up is liable to face legal action
for a breach of its information even while it is at rest with one of its cloud
service providers.
Inside-out Approach to Security
Yet another smart move is to look
at security initiation from the inside – what experts would call
information-centric security. This approach would ensure that the company is
aware of the kind of security flaws and potential exploits that each data asset
is exposed to. Analyzing the environment where data is at rest and in motion
requires a pervasive vulnerability assessment. This exercise will help your IT
department zero in on deviations from normal behavior that could invite
malicious interception.
‘Organizations must acknowledge the fact that security is not a
one-time task but a continuous process of monitoring and evaluation’
Companies that have a BYOD policy
must educate themselves about imminent threats like accidental loss of data
caused by a minor error of a well-meaning employee.
That takes us to the next
important aspect of maintaining the health of your internal defense mechanism.
Employee-centric social sensitization
Otherwise referred to as social
engineering in security parlance, this concept is gaining popularity among
technology enterprises that wish to acquaint employees with major technology
migrations. Ponemon Institute discovered that about 64 percent of data breaches
were caused by human error and access mismanagement.
Organizations are now adopting
Unified Threat Management devices that offer composite control over employee
access to cloud and enterprise assets. Detecting misconfigurations in these
control devices can be challenging. Security personnel can adequately educate
your employees to avoid naive actions that may put themselves and the company’s
assets in a dicey situation. Every team needs to understand how their
negligence can give way for advance persistent threats to weaken the company’s
line of defense.
Security audit experts usually
offer this sensitivity training as part of their vulnerability status reviews
and recommendations. Today, one can no longer demarcate benign areas from
blatantly malign ones. The goal is to get every member involved in managing
individual practices with diligence. This can also help eliminate the perceived
hostility surrounding the idea of a hardcore surveillance policy.
Understand the objective of security assessment for your enterprise and
application
Security experts assert that it
may be time to accept that security management is moving from the goal of
breach prevention to breach detection and mitigation. The ugly truth is that it
is no longer practical to think one can prevent all data breaches. The only way
out is a continuous appraisal to evaluate your posture and what are the latest
attack vectors that have developed after your last evaluation. Young
enterprises can leverage on a security testing partner who works with you from
scratch and provides long term assistance in ensuring continuous excellence.
The most important step in
adjudging your security posture is identifying the key focus areas with respect
to your enterprise and the technology platforms your applications are dependent
on. Security assessment is not a generic, ‘one size fits all’ capsule. Most
tools in the market fail to offer focused results simply because they are quite
generic in approach. An ideal vulnerability and risk appraisal would begin by
investigating existing operational pathways and dependencies and give you
valuable insights on what it can offer for your enterprise. This way, you will
only have to pay for the services that you actually need.
Evaluate your options
While it is every organization’s
responsibility to make an informed decision in hiring or partnering with a
security services provider, the most desirable trait one must look for in
security partner is their ability to understand your environment and their
capability to offer a focused and complementary service package.
Organizations must acknowledge
the fact that security is not a one-time task but a continuous process of
monitoring and evaluation. However, it is indispensable at certain points in
time including before you go live following a major upgrade or a change in the
product portfolios. Identify a cyber security analyst with a constantly
updating threat databases of attack modes that cause high damage from a safe
distance.
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