How to best avoid a cyber attack

If we’ve learned anything from the recent Facebook/Cambridge Analytica debacle that affected 87 million people, it’s this: our personal data is ripe for the picking. Mitigating cyber security risks should rank at the top of every CEO’s priority list. For that, you need a thorough understanding of the topic and the ability to recruit the right people with the necessary skills to stay (at least) one step ahead of cyber threats.

Know thy enemy.

To stay ahead of hackers, it’s important for management and those dedicated to overseeing an organization’s data to be aware of the types of data breaches occurring today.

According to former Acting Comptroller of the Currency, Keith Norieka, “Phishing is a primary method for breaching data systems and is often the entry mechanism to perpetrate other malicious activity, such as installing ransomware, accessing confidential information, compromising internal systems to effect payments, or conducting espionage.”

Pay attention.

In many cases, cyber attacks can be avoided by simply keeping up with your own technology. The massive 2017 Equifax data breach that compromised the personal information of 143 million people could have been avoided by simply installing a web application vulnerability patch that had been available for two months prior. Experts also recommend using an Intrusion Detection System (IDS) to immediately alert you to a data breach, thus allowing you valuable time to react before too much time passes.

 

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