When it comes to dealing with IT security concerns and mitigating risk, businesses need a repetitive and proactive approach. Cybercrime is an ever-increasing hazard for most organizations. As technological innovations get better, so do the tactics and abilities of hackers who would do anything to access your sensitive data.
Reputational risk, legal exposure, and other regulatory requirements–all these things demand regular assessment of systems and prioritization of IT security.
Security Risk Assessment: An Overview
Performed on your cyber security measures and network, a security assessment is a risk analysis that exactly determines how vulnerable you are. It also shows you just how easy or difficult it is for cybercriminals to hack into your company system.
Based on statistics, many people get surprised by the results of their security assessment. A recent study showed that 75.6% of organizations were discovered to have experienced at least one successful cyber-attack within the past year – and that represents three-quarters of all businesses in the market.
Therefore, performing a proper security assessment on your business network is important. Doing so allows you to pinpoint its weaknesses and discover the best method to fix them.
What Can You Expect in a Security Risk Assessment?
Initial Meeting
First, you will meet with a service provider to discuss your business and IT needs. You will need to tackle your IT procedures, as well as your goals for the security assessment procedure.
Onsite Research
The next step will involve the service provider’s team performing an on-site visit to review all your technology and IT processes.
Analysis
Security analysts will then take the information they’ve gathered from your company and start identifying vulnerabilities and threats. They will also study your company’s risk levels and existing security controls.
Final Report
After the analysis, you will receive a complete security risk assessment report. This document summarizes your infrastructure components and architecture, vulnerabilities, recommended IT security measures, and overall compliance.
Working with a Managed Service Provider (MSP)
The unfortunate reality is, if a security assessment team can detect vulnerabilities in your system, others can surely do the same. Hackers will try to discover any weakness in your system and attack your valuable and confidential data.
When you collaborate with an MSP that is highly-skilled in assessing security, you want them to pinpoint the areas where your network’s defenses are insufficient. Not acknowledging a risk will only do more harm to your organization. It’s crucial to know all the ways a cybercriminal can infiltrate your network and come up with a solid plan to keep it protected from them.
Conclusion
Data breaches at major corporations prove that spending on IT security alone is not enough to safeguard your business. You need to also invest the necessary effort and time to assess your organization’s IT security health.
All enterprises, regardless of their size, must perform a security assessment regularly. Aside from preparing you for digital threats, this will help establish a culture of cyber security and awareness among your team members. Considering how employees are seen as one of the weakest links in a company’s security structure, this last is crucial. It can mean the difference between a security breach and your data staying safe.
