Cybersecurity #4 – Creating a Knock-Out Incident Response Plan
If determining where to start when creating a knock-out incident response plan (IR) has you scratching your head, consider a generic incident handling procedure template from the Computer Security Incident Response Team. This baseline document will need to be tailored, of course, to meet your organization’s specific needs, but it can indeed serve as a springboard to get the IR team’s creative juices flowing. Consider these components of an effective plan: 1. Start with something easy—an emergency contact/communications list. Note the info for those who “need to know” ASAP in the case of a possible security loss or breach.• Incident…
Let’s Celebrate Thanksgiving 2017 in Minnesota!
In the years following the first autumn harvest feast celebrated by the colonists and Indians at Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1621, individual colonies and states observed days of Thanksgiving. In the midst of the Civil War in 1863, President Abraham Lincoln decreed Thanksgiving Day a national holiday to be held on the fourth Thursday in November. For Minnesotans, the Holiday became official on October 23, 1860—three years before Lincoln’s decree—when governor Alexander Ramsey signed his name to commence a yearly day of Thanksgiving. Today, Minnesota farmers play a huge role in Thanksgiving celebrations across the country as the top turkey-producing and…
Cybersecurity #3 – Your Incident Response Plan
There’s no question whether or not your company needs an effective cybersecurity incident response(IR) plan. You need one. Every business needs one. Not convinced? Check out this sobering statistic from the Ponemon Institute: “90% of organizations that go offline due to a cyber-attack shutter their windows in the following two years.” Need more evidence? Remember the recent WannaCry ransomware attack and the Google Docs phishing scam? Exactly. Christie Terrill reminds us, “Having a tested incident response plan in your back pocket can make the difference between a swift recovery or a high-stress situation where every minute the incident remains unresolved results in more…
The Hallmarks of an Ethical Workplace
Name a business who doesn’t give a flying leap about ethical practices and a crystal ball will not be necessary to predict if that particular company will be around in a couple of years. There’s no disputing that ethics matter to the consumer. A reputation as an ethical business, in this age of the internet -savvy, reviews-driven, take-my-complaints-to-social-media consumer, has to be a priority. It’s an absolute must for newbie as well as veteran businesses. No one gets a pass. The importance a company places on ethics will be apparent to all by the set of standards a company practices…
Cybersecurity #2 – Preventing Employee-Generated Security Breaches
The first step to preventing employee-generated security attacks is acceptance of the threat and an awareness of how these threats could play out within your organization. It can happen to anyone, anywhere, at any time. There’s absolutely no place for an “it won’t happen to us” mentality when it comes to cybersecurity. “Despite all the attention and resources that cybersecurity is receiving from the media, executive management, and governments, organizations still fail to protect their most valuable assets from hackers because they focus too much on network security while ignoring the employee identity theft and access exploitation risk,” says Henry Bagdasarian, the…
Cybersecurity #1- The Reality of the Threat
We get it. The very thought of a security breach sends shudders quaking through your body. It’s the stuff of nightmares and ulcers, sleepless nights and nervous ticks. In an attempt to calm the stress hormones raging through your bloodstream, you squash the traumatizing thoughts. Anyway, what are the chances a breach will happen at your company? Slim, right? Unfortunately, not. There are multiple ways a security incident can unfold within your business. And whether the breach amounts to a relatively minor bump in the road or a devastating tragedy will have much to do with your level of preparedness.…