The global threat landscape is constantly evolving, making cybersecurity a number one priority for any company size. Large, complex enterprises with powerful sensitive data and valued digital assets are growing to be targets for cybercriminals. While cyberattacks are morphing, companies need to employ robust comprehensive strategies toward safeguarding their networks, systems, and data from different emerging threats.
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Failure to protect against cyber threats may lead to disastrous outcomes, such as financial loss, damage to reputation, and even legal liability. Since protection is vital, here are 15 advanced cyber security tips,, contributed by experts who can help big business shield their business operations from continuously evolving cyber threats:
1. MFA implementation
Relying solely on passwords is no longer good enough because of the increasing danger that such access represents to critical systems and sensitive information. MFA offers an additional layer of security by requiring end-users to present two or more forms of verification. Examples of this include a password combined with either a one-time code sent to a mobile device or a biometric scan.
In the case of MFA, the attacker, even after compromising one authentication method-for instance, via phishing-must breach the second layer of verification. Particularly for large enterprises, this is a significant concern in today’s environment of employees accessing corporate networks from numerous locations with a wide range of end-point devices. MFA mitigates risks associated with weak or compromised passwords, which remain a common attack vector.
2. Conducting Regular Security Audits
Security audits are important in determining the presence of a flaw, how effective the existing security is, and ensuring standards within the industry are followed. These assessments should be done routinely and involve both internal and external analyses.
An external audit gives you an unbiased analysis of your security posture, and most often it reveals some of the risks that might be overlooked by internal teams. Auditors examine every other feature, ranging from network security to access controls, data protection policies, and disaster recovery plans. Once the audit is conducted, any recommendations for security enhancements should be paired with timely implementation in order to minimize exposure to potential risks.
Moreover, large organizations can go a step further and even participate in constant monitoring of their systems. Continuous Security Monitoring with the relevant tools will equally be helpful for effectively detecting and responding to security incidents in real time. It reduces the time cybercriminals have to exploit weaknesses.
3. Training Employees
Human error is one of the leading causes of data breaches. Even the best security systems are undermined if employees lack basic cyber threat awareness or ways to avoid them. Cybersecurity training is an important aspect of employee development, especially for employees who have jobs involving sensitive information.
Topics of training will involve, but are not limited to, how to identify phishing attempts, use of strong passwords, handling sensitive information, and steps to take if a security breach is suspected. Beyond this, businesses should instill an attitude of cybersecurity awareness in their employees in which the employee is responsible for the security in the organization and aware of his or her role in protecting the company.
Regular training in cybersecurity through drills or simulated phishing will also keep the employees attentive to the emerging tactics used by cybercriminals.
4. Implement a Robust Incident Response Plan
No organization, despite all best preventive measures that could be put in place, is fully immune to some sort of cyber attack. This simply is because a well-documented and tested Incident Response Plan minimizes the aftermath of a breach and accelerates recovery. The IRP should include what to do when a cybersecurity incident occurs, roles and responsibilities of all members of staff during an incident of cybersecurity, communication protocols while the incidence is happening, threat containment procedures, and threat mitigation procedures.
Large organizations should form an incident response team that includes IT, legal, public relations, and other business units, depending on the nature of the incident. Training such a team will be very important in rapidly isolating the affected systems, preserving evidence needed for forensic analysis, and recovering lost or compromised data.
The bulk of handling this lies in the continuous updating and testing of the incident response plan to provide updated protection against emerging threats. When properly executed, it minimizes financial costs and reputational damage from a cyberattack.
5. Encrypt Sensitive Data
Encryption is a fundamental security measure that protects sensitive data both at rest and in transit. Even when hackers may gain access to encrypted data, they cannot read or access the data without the decryption key. Advanced modern algorithms such as AES-Advanced Encryption Standard are among the highly efficient for keeping information such as customer data, IP, and financial records safe.
Encryption should be done across the organization on all communications, databases, and backup systems, even for devices working remotely from the corporate network. Many organizations do not encrypt sensitive data, which puts them at risk but may also result in violations of regulations dealing with data protection and thus result in legal penalties.
Our blog explains more about public vs private encryption.
6. Anomaly Detection in Network Traffic
It will help real-time network monitoring, especially in the detection of unusual activity that may indicate a committed cyberattack. Large enterprises have complex networks with thousands of endpoints. Manual detection cannot be carried out, while it can be supported up to an extent with automated network monitoring tools using machine learning and artificial intelligence analyzing anomalies in network traffic, such as sudden spikes in data transfer or unauthorized access attempts.
This would provide an attacker with fewer opportunities to further escalate if detected early and addressed. Network monitoring solutions should be configured to alert the security team in such a way that upon detection of any suspicious activity, an immediate response can be enabled.
7. Apply PoLP - Principle of Least Privilege
According to the principle of least privilege, a security concept indicates which user access level is allowed to perform his or her job functions. This concept helps companies restrict insider threats or compromised user accounts by reducing access to sensitive information and critical systems.
The access control policies should also be regularly reviewed and updated to ensure they precisely align according to the PoLP. For example, in cases where workers change their current occupations or leave, their access privileges must be obligatorily changed. Also, an institution is advised to use role-based access control systems, which makes review work easy.
8. Segment Your Network
Network segmentation is the configuration of an organization’s network into smaller, isolated segments. It ensures that various access controls and security policies are in place for different segments. Therefore, when a single device or system is compromised, the attackers will hardly access the entire network. Since segmentation reduces the inside movements of the attacker within the network, it minimizes the potential breach impact.
The sensitive information, such as customer data or proprietary research, for instance, can sit in a different segment of the network with access controls much tighter. In other words, even if a cybercriminal gains access to one portion of the network, they would be unable to reach this critical data.
9. Keep Software and Systems at Current Versions
The targets of such attacks are usually very outdated versions of software, as previous versions have some weak points that have already been found and successfully tried. Large companies need to have a reliable system of controlling the updates of the software and security patches in order to keep all the systems up-to-date.
Automated patch management solutions implement many of these steps in order for IT teams to deploy patches on time within an organization. In doing so, the window of vulnerability and subsequent exploitation decreases while companies remain guarded.
10. Conduct Penetration Testing
Penetration testing, also known as ethical hacking, involves simulating cyberattacks to reveal system weaknesses in the organization’s security posture. The testers make use of the same techniques that malicious hackers do through the process of finding and exploiting any weakness in your system. In fact, this often provides a real insight into the way one should strengthen their defenses.
Large enterprises should undertake planned penetration testing at regular intervals, particularly following major network changes or after introducing new technologies. The results from such tests enable the IT staff to identify lapses in security and take proactive measures to correct them before actual attackers can exploit them.
11. Secure Remote Work Environments
As more people work from home, how they connect to the corporate network becomes much more of an issue. Virtual Private Networks offer a safe, secure, encrypted connection for employees working from home against cybercriminals who would intercept sensitive data in transit across the internet. On top of VPNs, remote devices should also be installed with robust security software, including antivirus protection, firewalls, and endpoint detection and response tools. IT teams should also clamp down on strict security policies regarding remote access, such as MFA and limitation of access to sensitive data from remote sites.
12. Backup Essential Data on a Regular Basis
Data backup forms a significant core of any cybersecurity strategy. In the event of any ransomware attack, corruption of data, or hardware failure, regular backups make sure critical information can be recovered as quickly as possible. Backups should be kept both on-site and off-site to protect against localized incidents, such as natural disasters or physical theft.
Large organizations should also periodically check their backup and recovery process so that, in the event of any calamity, businesses can restore data without any hindrance. A well-maintained backup system reduces downtime and reduces the overall impact of a cyberattack.
13. Defend Against Insider Threats
Insider threats emanate from employees, contractors, and business partners who usually have authorized access to sensitive systems. These risks include intentional, such as a disgruntled employee, and unintentional, like making an employee expose sensitive information by mistake. Its prevention enables the installation of monitoring tools that would eventually keep track of user behavior by notification of unusual activities, such as access to files outside the scope of the user’s normal work. Performing background checks on employees and exit interviews are other ways to help in the prevention of insider threats and the identification of impending risks before they materialize.
14. Utilize Advanced Threat Detection and Prevention Tools
Similarly, detection and prevention tools should move at the same pace that these threats become sophisticated. Investment in next-generation application security solutions such as Verimatrix XTD go a long way in helping large enterprises defeat very coordinated attacks such as APTs, Zero-day vulnerabilities, and ransomware. These utilities use various advanced techniques, such as machine learning or artificial intelligence, to find abnormal patterns of behavior and block the threat before it causes damage. In large enterprises, investment in advanced threat detection tools is a must; staying ahead of the cybercriminals depends on it.
15. Ensure Compliance.
For a closer look at Verimatrix’s commitment to compliance, click here to view the spectrum of certifications and compliances our solutions can help your organization with.
Compliance with industry standards and regulations, such as the General Data Protection Regulation, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, and Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, among others, are not only legally binding but also one of the main parts of cybersecurity. RCCP helps an organization avoid heavy fines that may be imposed by regulatory bodies due to non-compliance with specific regulations. In addition, there is moral harm to the general reputation of the firm. All large organizations should regularly check the compliance requirements and should make the policies of cybersecurity compatible with the most recent regulatory standards regarding the protection of data, periodic auditing, and documentation of security practice.
Final Thoughts
Cybersecurity is an ongoing operation, and considering that large enterprises transfer a lot of data, it’s certain that there are more sophisticated cyber threats than ever. By implementing these 15 cybersecurity tips into your organization, you will significantly fortify your defenses, reduce the risk of breaches, and safeguard your most valuable assets. Recall that security needs to be proactive and multilayered; in this fashion, you make it difficult for cybercriminals to attack your business, thus guaranteeing it secure for the years to come.
