Cybersecurity: Protecting Your Business from Cyber Threats

In today’s digital age, the attack surface is constantly expanding due to trends in remote work, the sophistication of cyber security groups, and inherent human vulnerabilities. Cyber security is crucial, and it’s no wonder that cyber security incidents have topped global companies’ concerns, as highlighted in the Allianz Risk Barometer’s 2022 annual report.

Maintaining operations after a cyber intrusion is vital for customer trust, business revenue, brand reputation, and regulatory compliance.

Step 1: Establish a Dedicated Cyber Resiliency Unit

The first step towards cyber resilience is creating a focused unit led by a CR champion. This leader should possess both IT and business acumen and have the full backing of senior leadership. Organizational silos, where crucial knowledge resides only within specific functions, can hinder resiliency efforts. The CR champion should integrate insights and support from various business functions into a cohesive cyber resiliency program.

Step 2: Increase Awareness of Digital Resources

An essential aspect of cyber resilience is having a comprehensive inventory of IT and business networks, operational technology, industrial control systems (OT/ICS), and data repositories.

With many organizations migrating to the cloud, off-premises and hybrid environments must also be included. The CR team, with help from business and IT process owners, should map digital roles and activities crucial for organizational functioning. Additionally, it is vital to survey cyber links to suppliers and vendors, estimate associated risks, and formally acknowledge hazards.

Step 3: Prioritize Key Assets

Once digital resources are identified, the next step is to prioritize protecting high-value assets and monitoring significant system weaknesses. Adopting a zero-trust security framework, implementing stringent identity and access management controls, and securing internet service providers (VPNs) and encryption are critical measures. Network segmentation can prevent lateral movement by malicious intruders, and clear demarcations between IT and OT connectivity and control systems are essential. Offline backups for all data and systems further bolster security.

Step 4: Establish Cyber Threat Partnerships

Anticipating cyber attacks involves establishing partnerships that can help prevent and respond to incidents.

Step 5: Integrate Cyber and Business Strategies

A unified approach to managing cyber risk that integrates cyber and business strategies is crucial. This involves updating governance documents such as business impact analyses, technology management strategies, and business continuity procedures. CR team members should collaborate with IT teams and business lines to review and refine cyber incident response plans, recovery objectives, maximum tolerable downtime, and alternative action plans.

Step 6: Embed Cyber Resilience Across the Organization

Although the CR team leads the effort, program goals should be integrated throughout the organization. Business units and IT teams must create or update their cyber resilience governance documents.

A comprehensive checklist can help ensure a robust plan:

1. Identify a CR champion.
2. Heighten awareness of all digital resources.
3. Document dependencies on third parties, suppliers, and vendors.
4. Prioritize assets across digital, physical, and vendor-managed inventories.
5. Increase network segmentation and develop a data vault.
6. Enhance identity and access management (IAM), emphasizing role-based access management (RBAM) for critical systems.
7. Partner with government agencies for threat awareness.
8. Collaborate with industry leaders for efficient CR processes.

Step 7: Prepare for Cyber Crisis Situations

Enterprises should have a target operating model for cyber crises, including arrangements to restart systems temporarily disabled by an attack. Regular testing of continuity and crisis management playbooks is essential. In case of a breach, pre-designed communication scripts and an established approval process for public information release are crucial. These internal plans should be shared confidentially with relevant government agencies.

Step 8: Secure Senior Leadership Support

Given the widespread occurrence of cyber attack and their potential for significant damage, cyber resilience requires unwavering support from senior leadership. Board members and senior management should receive regular updates on the enterprise’s cyber resilience posture to maintain awareness, enable resource prioritization, and facilitate risk mitigation. Their support is foundational to organization-wide recognition of the critical value of cyber resilience efforts.

Conclusion

Achieving robust cyber resilience is a multifaceted process that requires strategic planning, cross-functional collaboration, and unwavering support from senior leadership.