THE HIDDEN RISKS OF A CYBER ATTACK
There are 14 risk factors that organization leaders should consider when preparing for a cyber-attack.
A sea change is taking place in
cyber risk management. The idea that cyberattacks are increasingly likely, and
perhaps inevitable, is taking hold among executives and board members.
In order to properly prioritize,
organizations must understand the types of cyber-risks they may face and must
be able to measure the likelihood of their occurrence. They also need to
understand the consequences of these risks in the event of a condition.
There are many ways in which a cyber-attack
can affect an organization, and the impact will depend directly on the nature
and severity of the attack. There are 14 impact factors (see study) that
business leaders should consider when preparing for potential cyber incidents.
Some are more familiar to us,
such as those associated with data breaches. However, others are broader in
scope and intangible, being more difficult to quantify and often hidden from
the public light.
Understanding the cyber-risks by
which an organization can be affected requires knowledge of the business model,
operations processes, trends, maturity levels, and specific vulnerabilities of
the organization that are generally also extrapolated to the whole of its
industry and sector.
We can divide the response
process to these 14 impact factors that can affect a company into three phases,
phases that tend to overlap and extend over time depending on the type of cyber-attack.
1. Classification of the incident: This phase takes place in the days or weeks following the
discovery of the cyber-attack. During this phase, the leaders of the
organization have to make decisions and actions in the short term, including
communication with external agents and the formulation of strategies for the
continuity of operations. This phase includes a thorough analysis of what
happened, immediate steps to stop it, and an urgent review of security controls
to remedy it as soon as possible.
2. Impact management: This
phase takes place during the weeks or months after the impact, in order to
reduce and address the direct consequences of the incident. The workflow may
vary depending on the nature of the attack, but will likely have to include
efforts to strengthen internal infrastructure and fine-tune operations processes;
reduce risk for customers, suppliers and partners; carry out cyber-audits
processes and implement the discoveries that they provide us.
3. Business recovery: It is
the last phase of the process and can take months or even years. Efforts are
focused on repairing the damage caused to the business and preventing a similar
event from happening again in the future. Recovery of business activities is
also variable, but can include rebuilding or redesigning business processes,
systems, applications, or other assets; the development of strategies for the
reconstruction of corporate reputation, sources of income and competitive
advantage; investments in improving security, detection systems, or
preparedness capacity - all aimed at a single goal, coming out of the crisis
stronger.
In our study "The hidden
risks of a cyber-attack" we analyze both the possible risks that a company
may face, as well as the costs that the effect of a cyber-crisis entails for
the company, some of which may be more familiar to you (the tip of the iceberg)
but you will be surprised to know the real scope and possible consequences of
such a threat (the base of the iceberg).
To be safe from all the hidden cybercrime,
we should always have a total
security software to keep your data safe.
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