Managing Data Security and Privacy

We all know the advantages of Cloud computing for businesses. With Cloud, you are at liberty to access everything anywhere. When traveling to an offsite destination, you can access everything that your employees do at the office. In addition, you are able to access information from all mobile devices.

And even though data security is high in cloud, even the cloud is not 100% safe from the threat of data breaches and security attacks. Human error, poor passwords, weakened password security, staff accidentally deleting files, BYOD (Bring your Own Devices) that are left unattended without locking, misplacing them, sharing files without proper encryption software installed etc., are some of the ways by which an organization’s and thereby their client’s data are left to chances of compromise.

Let’s see some of the predictions for 2020 by AppRiver’s security analysts:

• The Internet of things (IOT): With wearable tech, mobile devices and payment portals all syncing together, one breach gains entry to considerable amounts of data. When vulnerabilities exist in any popular OS, and hackers know about them, it is only a matter of time before they are exploited
• Bring your own device (BYOD): While it saves costs, allows employees the flexibility to work from anywhere and to choose their own devices, BYOD makes security policies, such as updates and patches, cumbersome to implement and nearly impossible to enforce since the security rests in employee hands. With these combined factors, attacks targeted at businesses through their employees’ personal devices is likely to increase

Avoiding data and privacy breaches is of utmost importance for organizations and even the remote possibilities for such instances would be intolerable for such businesses who rely upon their customer’s or client’s satisfaction.

And this is what’s happening now in the corporate world with Apple taking on FBI in defending their customer user privacy policy.

Apple vs FBI

US Attorney General William Barr last week asked Apple to provide access to two iPhones used by Saudi Air Force officer Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani who shot and killed three people at a naval base in Pensacola, Florida, in December. Barr accused Apple of providing no “substantive assistance” to investigators trying to break into the phones.

Apple says it has already handed over all the data in its possession to the FBI. But the FBI also wants data on the phone that might not be on the cloud. Two days after Barr’s demand, President Donald Trump tweeted his frustration with the company: “We are helping Apple all of the time on TRADE and so many other issues, and yet they refuse to unlock phones used by killers, drug dealers and other violent criminal elements. They will have to step up to the plate and help our great Country, NOW!”

This is the second time in four years that Apple is at the centre of a battle that pits personal privacy against public safety. In 2015, the FBI went to court to force Apple to help them unlock an iPhone 5c that belonged to Syed Rizwan Farook who, along with his wife Tashfeen Malik, killed 14 people and injured 22 others in a terrorist attack in San Bernardino, California. By that time companies like Amazon, Google, Facebook and organizations like EFF, ACLU along with a horde of privacy activists, stand by Apple.

Data breaches of 2020

Reports of data breaches are down by 52% year-on-year in the first half of 2020.

According to the research, there were 2037 publicly reported breaches through to June 30, accounting for a 52% decrease compared to the first six months of 2019 and 19% below the same time period for 2018. By mid-year 2019, there had been 4298 breaches reported.

The main cause of data breaches in the first half of this year were misconfigured databases and services. Over 27 billion records were exposed between January 1 2020 and June 30 2020, exceeding the total number of records exposed during all of 2019 by more than 12 billion records.

No matter how efficient and effective a tool you have, if you don’t know how to use it or if it’s in the wrong hands, the tool becomes nothing to be desired for.

Stats shows more companies aligning with MSPs to combat security challenges

Today, business professionals that do not consider cyber security a top concern may be living under a rock—and in actuality, the modern threat landscape should make them want to hide under one.

Managed IT service providers are realizing the importance of offering their clients security services because of, well, the numbers. The following ten statistics illustrate current cyber security threats to businesses, holes that leave many organizations vulnerable to cyber attacks, and the repercussions of not having a robust security strategy in place in today’s tumultuous IT landscape. Consider leveraging these facts in your conversations with clients and prospects to strengthen the way you sell your services and security expertise!

Threats

Today, cyber threats continue to evolve and grow more sophisticated. The following stats highlight just how ill-prepared businesses are to combat these threats and how large the opportunity is for MSPs to step in and protect them.

1. It's predicted that by 2021, cybercrime will cost the world $6 trillion annually.
2. On average, there is a hacker attack every 39 seconds.
3. 1 in 323 emails sent to small businesses are malicious.
4. Hacking tools and kits for all types of cyber crime are available online, some as low as $1.

Vulnerabilities

While there will always be some level of risk associated with being in business, there are methods that can be taken to manage vulnerabilities. Yet, without the proper security knowledge and support, threats can easily slip through the cracks, as the following statistics convey.

5. 95% of cyber security breaches can be traced back to human error.
6. 52% of small businesses feel helpless to defend themselves against new forms of cyber threats. 
7. 62% of small businesses claim that they lack the skills in-house to be able to properly deal with security issues.
8. Increased investment in employee training can reduce the risk of a successful cyber attack 45–70%.

Repercussions

The reality is: without proper due diligence and effective solutions comes significant loss. These stats illustrate the real repercussions of cyber attacks for businesses.

9. 44 percent of businesses estimate they could lose $10,000 or more during just one hour of downtime.
10. 60% of small businesses go out of business after a breach.

 

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