The world beyond your organization’s perimeter is dangerous and must be defended against. We hear breach notifications nearly daily, stalwart companies and institutions identified for data loss. It is somewhat numbing.
We cannot afford to become desensitived. We must be vigilant. We must stand watch; after all, we are the guardians of the data in our possession.
Many small businesses consider themselves immune, or at the least, lesser targets. This could not be further from the truth. Small businesses are being attacked at unprecedented rates and, unlike enterprise-level organizations, they often cannot sustain the cost.
The average cost of mitigation and remediation to a small business is over $8,700. Between the expense and the loss of public trust, more than 60% of small businesses affected go out of business within six months of a breach. You must enlist a proactive strategy.
Every organization has sensitive data. We all have Personally Identifiable Information, PII; whether it be client, company or employee information . . . we all have it.
The federal government defines PII as any two pieces of information that might be used to identify, or locate, an individual. First name, last name and address; last name and birthdate; address and SSN . . . we all have it; and we are all responsible for protecting it.
The three most significant means by which organizations are breached are malicious outsider, accidental loss and negligence, and malicious insider; collectively these account for better than 80% of all data loss incidence. For this reason a layered approach is necessary.
Gone are the days when a robust antivirus product was enough to protect you. The current climate dictates that a company or institution be protected on multiple fronts and a diligent and dynamic effort must by adopted.
CSRI assists its clients with understanding best-practices. We work with an organization to identify areas needing address; and to prioritize efforts and establish internal controls and defenses.