By Rich Kenney
Cybersecurity is difficult to manage because way too often, your local IT professional makes it confusing. The so-called “experts” speak in jargon, and they try to scare you. Let’s try something very different by putting it in these words: Cybersecurity is like a layer cake.
For many years, cybersecurity was almost intuitive. You needed a firewall to guard your network, keep unwanted people out, and keep your data safe. Your IT provider also reminded you that you had to stay current with Windows Updates and antivirus software; then, because people forget, they automated this for you. Finally, it made perfect sense that if bad things happened, you needed to be able to recover your files. A disaster recovery / backup solution was added to your cyberdefense plan. That approach worked for many years.
Then things changed. We began to depend on our computer systems to store sensitive data, credit card info, health and patient records, and intellectual property. Then, the criminals created an entire industry out of breaching your systems and stealing your data. Foreign countries, organized crime units, competitors, and other bad guys accessed and stole valuable data. Even former employees began stealing records or files to help themselves or embarrass your business.
So what does a business need to protect itself? That’s where it starts to get more complex. At TechSolutions, we have a very different way to approach Cybersecurity.
Cybersecurity is now about layers of protection. Hikers and mountain climbers wear lots of layers of thin clothing to stay warm. The earth is composed of lots of layers starting from our atmosphere all the way down to the planet’s core. And a layer cake reminds us all that the more layers you have, the better.
Cybersecurity is no longer a simple sheet cake. Today, it can be represented by a multi-layer dessert comprised of many flavors of moist cake, icing, special fillings, toppings, and don’t forget the cherry on top. The more important the occasion, the more layers in the cake.
Thinking in terms of cybersecurity, picture a layer that identifies threats that go past your firewall. Then, a layer that prohibits computer users from accessing known threats. Then, yet another layer that helps guard against inside threats. Think about monitoring for your company’s data appearing on the dark web; and what about training your staff to spot malicious emails and ransomware; having to confirm your identity in more than 1 way. The list of different layers goes on and on.
There are now layers of protections that use Artificial Intelligence to identify out-of-the-ordinary computer events and react accordingly. There are protection mechanisms built into Microsoft 365 that are available, but you need to know how to turn them on. Many firms even track every single action that occurs on the network to identify what was accessed or stolen if a breach actually does happen.
Each layer of the cake provides something special for protecting your IT environment. The more layers you have, the more incredible the cake. The more layers the hiker has, the more they can adjust to different situations over the course of a long day on the trail. Put simply, you need to work with an IT company that will implement a variety of cybersecurity layers to protect you effectively and efficiently.
The three-layer cybersecurity plan is no longer enough to protect a company worried about their reputation and their bottom line. If you have not improved your cybersecurity strategy in the past year or so, your current IT vendor is simply NOT doing its job.
Today, you need to add more cybersecurity layers because everyone now knows …
… the more layers of protection, the better.
Expect more from your IT provider!