Cybersecurity Analysts – Business Enablers

Before we talk about cybersecurity, we need to distinguish what cybersecurity is. Many companies refer to cybersecurity as InfoSec or Information Security, but that is a misconception.

What is the Difference between Cybersecurity and Information Security?

Cybersecurity is the protection of data that is found in electronic form such as, hard drives, servers, networks, and mobile devices, from experiencing a breach or a cyberattack. This job description also lies in detecting digital or virtual information, where its vulnerabilities are, and what is needed to protect from cyber threats and cyberattacks.

Information security or Infosec is the protection of all data, not just electronic data. Today sensitive information is stored digitally either on the cloud, big banks, hard drives, servers, or networks. But most businesses still have some form of paper trail that leads to digital storage. Information Security is about the protection of the information in paper form as well.

Cybersecurity Need

Cybersecurity has become a requirement for businesses globally, with vulnerabilities costing organizations millions each year.

• Data breaches exposed 4.1 billion records in the first half of 2019.
• In 2018, Under Armor reported that its “My Fitness Pal” was hacked, affecting 150 million users.
• The average cost of a ransomware attack on businesses is $133,000.
• 69% of companies see compliance mandates driving spending.
• The total cost of cybercrime for each company increased by 12%, from $11.7 million in 2017 to $13.0 million in 2018.

The cost to a business when a breach occurs has far-reaching implications The trust relationship with clients is damaged, resulting in clients taking their businesses elsewhere.

Cybersecurity as a Business Enabler

Mindsets have to be changed, whereas money spent on cybersecurity is no longer seen reactively but rather proactively, as a critical influencer in an organization’s growth strategies.
Cybersecurity can accelerate the growth and success of a business in the following ways:

Customer Loyalty

• 89% of businesses said that improving cybersecurity would enhance customer loyalty and trust.
• 90% said it would improve their reputation in the market, potentially attracting new customers.
• 89% said they felt better information security was a competitive differentiator that would help them win customers.
• Nobody wants their banking details or medical records available on the internet to anyone interested. Customers will take their business where they perceive their personal information is kept private. Tenacious cybersecurity leads to improved sales and enlarged customer retention.

Increased Productivity

When a business has an adequate cybersecurity infrastructure with a detection and response program, preventative controls that can be uber restricting are reduced, leading to increased productivity.

Rapid innovation is often kept in check by the restricting controls needed from cybersecurity departments, stifling the acceleration of business growth.

Gartner forecasts a 60% shift in the budget from ‘prevention’ to ‘detection and response,’ allowing more flexibility in accelerating business growth and productivity, without the loss of mitigation and containment.

New Markets

Advancing into new markets by introducing a new product, introducing a first-mover advantage, or utilizing market penetration strategies, always attracts new cyber threat interests. When a business knows that its cybersecurity infrastructure is tenacious, management can make and follow-through with the confident decisions needed in new market plays. Competition is outflanked by business that is backboned by a secure cybersecurity framework.

Data Optimization

Cybersecurity is dependent on awareness of everything that is happening with the information technology framework so that cyberthreats and cyberattacks can be detected and mitigated. This immense amount of digital information can be used for more than just protecting digital assets; it can be exploited to tweak network optimization through existing digital assets, delivering improved productivity. Digital information can also be used as a useful tool in determining needs in expansion plans.

Positive Controlled Breaches

Cybersecurity is fallible, and in the rapidly changing world of technological advances, no business is 100% cyberattack proof. But, if a breach is handled positively, it could reflect a marketing opportunity to increase a company’s reputation or a brand.

An avid example of this is the Cloudbleed incident at Cloudflare. Cloudflare had a significant breach in 2017 to the tune of over 1,200 000 million leaks, that could have caused irreparable damage to the company and its fiscal tally. How the breach was handled and communicated to its clients and the public made all the difference. Cloudflare was praised for its full disclosure and transparency and publishing mitigation plans and prompt actions. This added immense value to the brand, and Cloudfare became known for its ‘honesty,’ ‘adaptability’ and ‘doing difficult things well.’ You cannot put coin value on this kind of marketing.

Cybersecurity Consultants on Board

Businesses need an efficient security infrastructure to mitigate the risks of creating long-term cybersecurity vulnerabilities. This strategy cannot be a once-off evaluation but a continual cybersecurity protection environment that develops to diminish the different types of risks.

Organizations might not have the in-house expertise to detect and respond effectively to the alarming array of new and varied cyber threats launched daily. Hackers attack every 39 seconds, on average 2,244 times a day.

A business’s cybersecurity infrastructure can be analyzed and exposed to vulnerabilities (Sobers, 2020). A detailed evaluation of your vulnerabilities and controls can be offered by cybersecurity analysts, which can help to safeguard your digital assets as well as ensure that you are complying with industry governance.

Finding the Right Cybersecurity Service Provider

A team of expert cybersecurity analysts will leverage strategic and financial company information to model a secure cyber operating environment and provide a dashboard view of risk factors, probability of breach, and vulnerabilities.
It also offers several scenario-based cyber exercises, including:

• Executive-level, table top exercises focused on the enterprise response to several hypothetical cyber incidents.
• Executing tests, assumptions, plans, tasks, and analyzing operational processes.
• Enhancing the understanding and awareness of your workforce regarding the intricacies of cyber incident management. Untrained, non-IT employees cause many cybersecurity breaches.
• Providing relevant expertise to your managers is directly translatable to real-world events to increase your company’s cyber response preparedness.
• Validating external resources and Points-of-Contact (POCs) to form essential external relationships valuable in a crisis.
• Vital insights into your firm’s exact security position, along with assessments, diagnosis, audits, and all the necessary tools to implement a robust security strategy.

Global IT Services

Global IT Services will provide a team of highly-skilled, experienced, and certified information security analysts and engineers working in the information security domain and who are up-to-date with current cybersecurity threats. Our expert team will work in any environment and ensure the development, evaluation, and implementation of strong cybersecurity policies by conducting real risk and vulnerability assessments. Our cybersecurity consultants also empower your workforce by educating them about different cyber threats and solutions.

Bibliography

Cohen, P. (2019, July 3). Why cybersecurity is a business enabler. Retrieved from F-secure: https://blog.f-secure.com/why-cyber-security-is-a-business-enabler/
Cyber, X. (2019, February 7). Three reasons why cybersecurity is a business enabler. Retrieved from Medium: https://medium.com/@xqcyber/3-reasons-why-cyber-security-is-a-business-enabler-5d2da0e3a717
Olcott, J. (2019, September 15). Cybersecurity vs. information security. Retrieved from BitSight: https://www.bitsight.com/blog/cybersecurity-vs-information-security
Sobers, R. (2020, October 26). Varonis. Retrieved from Cybersecurity Statistics: https://www.varonis.com/blog/cybersecurity-statistics/
Using IoT to help retail businesses thrive in a competitive market. (2017, September 20). Retrieved from Vodafone: https://www.vodafone.com/business/news-and-insights/press-release/global-vodafone-survey-shows-strong-cyber-security-helps-businesses-to-grow