Table of Contents
5 Ways to Tell Whether You’re a Cybersecurity or Cybersecurity Theater Professional
Table of Contents
Humans, in general, have strange views about calculating and responding to risk for a sentient species. We zealously reduce one danger while effectively ignoring another that has the potential to have the same outcome. There are a plethora of cases like this, and cybersecurity is no exception. Organizational leadership frequently expects security staff to “mark off boxes” using traditional methods, leading to a false sense of security. How much of what your company does genuinely protects your apps and data, and how much is just “cybersecurity theatre”?
- Cloud Security
You’d be remiss if you didn’t inquire about security with your cloud-native service provider. When your provider states, “We guarantee a secure architecture,” what do you think? If your next thinking isn’t “what about my data?” you’re engaging in “cybersecurity theatre,” as data security is your duty. Cloud architectures are safe because they were designed with security in mind. When companies transfer workloads to the cloud quickly and lose track of where their sensitive data is stored, the hazards increase. You’ll need a comprehensive data catalog, as well as knowledge of where copies are stored and possible snapshots.
Access control policies for sensitive data are required. Audit trails, the capacity to run data through forensics if necessary, the ability to validate and reduce entitlements, and the ability to check for vulnerabilities from a surface area perspective are all required. These aren’t brand-new techniques; the cloud settings are.
- Perimeter Security
One out of every two on-premises databases globally had at least one vulnerability after reviewing 27,000 on-premises databases. This study demonstrates that the current method of data security is ineffective. Organizations have prioritized and invested in perimeter and endpoint security measures for years, expecting that securing the systems or network around the data would suffice.
- Data Privacy
Until recently, data privacy was seen as a compliance concern, a box that auditors had to check. Traditional data logging and monitoring only covered a tiny portion of an organization’s data estate, leaving the majority of critical data vulnerable to internal and external threats. Even though nearly all enterprises whose sensitive data was stolen complied, 54 percent of businesses said they had no idea where their sensitive data was maintained. To protect the sensitive data they manage, businesses must now take a data-centric strategy. There is still much to be done.
- API security
A software middleman called an Application Programming Interface (API) allows apps to communicate with one another. APIs have become the major drivers of digital business innovation, and businesses must have a trustworthy framework to safeguard them as developers continue to rely increasingly on microservices and open source technologies to accelerate digital transformation. While web application firewalls and DDoS protection are critical components of a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy, they are insufficient to prevent hackers from exploiting developers’ reliance on APIs and actively seeking out new attack vectors and exploits. Blocking critical API security attacks, providing a positive security model built on OpenAPI specifications, integrating security into API lifecycle management, and delivering a unified solution for website and API security are all things that organizations must do to protect on-premises and multi-cloud applications.
- Employee’s Security Awareness
According to PWC, 30 percent of businesses believe their staff is the main source of security threats. Weak training, poor security measures, and poor policy communication are cited as explanations for this. Simply put, you’re doing cybersecurity theatre if your approach to employee security awareness is little more than a static collection of instructions placed in a handbook that you hope people read. According to CSO Online, email is used to deliver 94% of malware, while phishing assaults account for more than 80% of reported security incidents. More than a quarter of employees in the United States admit to having trouble recognizing a phishing email. As threat vectors evolve, security teams must provide ongoing education on best practices, and exercises such as simulated phishing attacks are critical components of this endeavor.
For whatever reason, we as a culture are willing to accept the added risk. When it comes to managing other people’s sensitive data, cybersecurity experts don’t have that luxury. Executive teams and the general public have lost patience with “cybersecurity theatre” as the threat landscape evolves and the risks of failure rise. It’s past time to improve.
More than a quarter of employees in the US admit to having trouble recognizing a phishing email. As threat vectors evolve, security teams must provide ongoing education on best practices, and exercises such as simulated phishing attacks are critical components of this endeavor.