One of these services that have become almost a necessity for organizations to have is cyber insurance.

What is Cyber Insurance?

A cyber insurance policy helps an organization pay for damages resulting from a successful cyberattack or data breach. In the event of such an incident, the policy can help cover the cost of investigation, crisis communication, legal services, and refunds to customers. Having this type of coverage in place can provide peace of mind in the event that your business is targeted by bad actors.

As data breaches and cyber-attacks become more common, the market for cyber insurance is booming. More businesses are feeling the effects of these attacks and are turning to insurance to protect themselves.

In fact, cyber insurance is one of the fastest-growing markets. The global cyber insurance market was valued at $7.7 billion in 2020 and is projected to grow to a staggering $20.4 billion by 2025 (Source).

Companies that suffer from a cyberattack can often find relief through cyber insurance, but this does not mean that they can forgo an all-encompassing cybersecurity program.

Think of it this way: drivers have car insurance to protect themselves from the monetary expenditure should an accident happen, but that’s only after the accident has happened. During the accident, the car launches out airbags to hold the driver and passengers safely inside the vehicle with restraints, and sometimes with newer cars, will divert the car from a collision altogether with modern technology.

The same goes for an organization incorporating security within their IT departments or working with a dedicated MDR provider similar to CyberMaxx. The people, processes, and technology implemented to help protect organizations from bad actors looking to breach assets is like those car safety features that are looking to prevent medical or property damage.

Put simply: Cybersecurity measures help prevent a data breach from happening so that cyber insurance isn’t necessary unless a breach occurs, which is much less likely with proper proactive measures deployed.

The Human Element

85% of data breaches are a result of human error (Source).

What does that mean? Typically it’s when an individual clicked on or downloaded something they weren’t supposed to and allowed malware of some kind to be installed in the organization’s networks, beginning the domino effect of a data breach.

In today’s market, insurance companies providing cyber liability coverage to businesses are increasingly requiring awareness training that includes regular phishing simulations. By regularly testing their employees’ ability to spot and avoid phishing scams, businesses can help protect themselves from the potentially devastating consequences of a successful cyber attack.
Cyber Insurance Is Calling The Shots

Organizations are increasingly being required by cyber insurers to implement security technologies in order to mitigate risk.

Why?

It makes sense. If an organization has an added security posture against cyber attacks, it has a heightened probability of preventing breaches and not even having to use the insurance policy.

Some of these technologies that insurance providers are requiring include:

• Endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions
• Vulnerability Risk Management (VRM)
• Network Detection and Response (NDR)
• Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) technology

What’s The Worst That Can Happen?

Some organizations have been playing roulette with their security, or lack thereof, and foregoing additional security protection with the intent of just paying deductibles should a breach occur.

The insurance provider may get the last laugh If an organization does not have basic cybersecurity measures in place. Cases have been reported that insurers are not covering expenses associated with a security incident if the organization cannot prove that the required security measures weren’t met.

Why Managed Security Is Better

Some insurance providers are requiring a Managed Detection and Response (MDR) solution (Hint: CyberMaxx is both), instead of an organization just purchasing the minimum required solutions – i.e. EDR, VRM, SIEM, etc.

MDR Services are designed to help organizations quickly identify and respond to threats. By combining human expertise, processes, and technology, MDR can provide a comprehensive solution for threat hunting, monitoring, and response.

MDR solutions improve your organization’s threat detection and incident response, making organizations with an MDR/XDR solution more attractive candidates for cyber insurance providers.

An important benefit of MDR is that it helps reduce the impact of threats without the need for additional staffing. Without the need to hire additional staff, a company’s security posture is immediately increased as having this human expertise that’s been trained for years doesn’t have the typical ramp-up time required with building a team from scratch.

Good Protection Matters: To Hire MDR or Not to Hire MDR

In the end, what insurers are requiring not only protects their bottom line but will help protect organizations choosing to purchase cyber insurance policies.

At CyberMaxx we actively work with cyber insurance to help lower premium rates on the organization’s behalf.

Not only does the insurer benefit from having CyberMaxx as the MDR/XDR provider because of the 20+ year track record of thwarted attacks and protected assets in the healthcare, financial services, retail, and other heavily regulated industries – It’s proven that when an organization uses CyberMaxx as the protection provider, assets won’t go breached.

The post Organizations Need Both Cyber Insurance and a Strong Cybersecurity Program appeared first on CyberMaxx.

In recent years, we have seen a number of high-profile data breaches affecting small and large businesses. As a result, data security has been a top priority for regulators, including the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

On May 24, 2022, The FTC released a new publication that provides guidance to financial institutions and their service providers about the FTC’s revised Safeguards Rule under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA).

Why Should You Care?

Well, it’s a law and if an organization is found not to have complied with these requirements, impending fines and sanctions will be imposed.

That’s not even the bad part. Taking the initiative and making sure that these guidelines are implemented within an organization can drastically reduce the probability of falling into a data breach. One that could result in a loss of trust, an embarrassment in the public, and ransomware fees in excess of $4M to $10M.

Give Me the Cliff Notes

Let’s cut to the chase, here are the highlighted actions all financial institutions that fall under Federal Trade Commission (FTC) law (That’s a majority of financial services organizations conducting business in the US) must comply with by December, 9th, 2022:

• Base your information security program on a risk assessment
• Implementing and periodically reviewing access controls
• Implement policies, procedures, and controls designed to monitor and log the activity
• Continuous monitoring or periodic penetration testing and vulnerability assessments
• Annual penetration testing of your information systems determined each given year
• Vulnerability assessments at least every six months
• Utilizing qualified information security personnel employed by you or an affiliate or service provider (Teaser: CyberMaxx is your friend)
• Establish a written incident response plan designed to promptly respond to, and recover from, any security event materially affecting the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of customer information in your control

What’s the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act?

As businesses continue to collect and store more data, it is becoming increasingly important for them to have strong data security measures in place. This is especially true for financial institutions subject to the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), which regulates how these institutions must protect customer information.

Under the GLBA, companies that offer consumers products and services like loans, financial advice, or insurance must explain their information-sharing practices to customers and take measures to keep sensitive data secure.

FTC Safeguards Rule: What Your Business Needs to Know

“FTC Safeguards Rule: What Your Business Needs to Know” is a new publication from the Federal Trade Commission that outlines their continued interest in regulating data security for businesses subject to GLBA. This is something that all businesses under FTC jurisdiction should be aware of, as they may now be more likely to face regulatory action.

In order to protect customer information, financial institutions and their service providers must maintain certain safeguards. These safeguards are outlined in detail in the FTC’s Safeguards Rule.

This Rule broadly defines what counts as a financial institution, including non-banking businesses such as check-cashing services, payday lenders, mortgage brokers, nonbank lenders, personal property or real estate appraisers, professional tax preparers, courier services, and credit reporting agencies.

In December 2021, in response to feedback from financial services companies and their third-party service providers, the FTC amended its Safeguards Rule. This new version of the Rule provides more concrete guidance on what information security safeguards financial institutions must implement as part of their overall program. Unlike previous versions of this Rule and other similar regulations promulgated by federal financial regulators, this new Rule includes specific criteria that must be met in order for a company’s security measures to be considered adequate.

What Can You do to Start Complying?

Your organization may be subject to the Safeguards Rule (most likely it is), so it’s important to take steps to ensure compliance.

1. Identify Your Organization’s “Qualified Individual”

The FTC’s amendments to the rule include designating someone within your organization to be the “Qualified Individual.” This person is responsible for ensuring that your organization complies with the rule and overseeing the development and execution of the organization’s security program. They will also be required to report to the company’s board of directors.

Even if a decision to outsource data privacy and security support to an MDR/XDR provider like CyberMaxx, the organization will still need to designate an internal Qualified Individual.

2. Needed: Encryption Services

Safeguards Rule requires that all sensitive customer data be encrypted at rest and in motion. Data can move in many ways and for a variety of reasons, so this is a broad requirement.

3. Access Controls – Does Your Organization Have Them?

Periodic reevaluation over who in the organization has access to what information, and for how long is a requirement under the new guidelines. One way to reduce the likelihood of data breaches is to restrict access to information on a need-to-know basis. By not permitting all employees to view all data at all times, you make it more difficult for hackers to access sensitive information.

4. Review Applications and Partners

Organizations should take a close look at their in-house applications and third-party partners to make sure they are meeting all of the requirements laid out in FTC’s Safeguards Rule. Despite best intentions, data breaches happen. And when they do, the consequences can be severe – especially when customer data is involved

How Can CyberMaxx Help?

How can CyberMaxx help you with these updated guidelines under the Safeguards Rule?

The real question is what can’t we help you with?

CyberMaxx offers all the services that are required under the Safeguards Rule:

• Penetration Testing
• Vulnerability Services
• Network IDS/IPS Services
• Risk Assessments
• Incident Response Plans and Playbooks

More and more organizations just like yours have been making the switch to our managed security services.

99%, 72, and 1,000+ are the magic numbers security professionals like yourself are seeing to make the change to CyberMaxx.

CyberMaxx has:

• A 99% customer retention rate
• An NPS of 72
• and that’s all while protecting over a thousand locations

Matched with our mature SOC that has over 20+ years of experience, our free trials are showing these organizations the difference we bring while keeping their current protection in place.”

Let’s talk. Time is running out and we want to make sure you aren’t caught by the FTC or a bad actor.

The post FTC Releases Guidance on New Safeguards Rules…Why You Should Care. Ready? appeared first on CyberMaxx.

Ready?

Best practices. Who’s and what are these best practices? More importantly, if you know of these best practices, are they in place within your organization?

Lower The Threshold For Threat And Information Sharing

Sharing is caring, right? Or at least this is what most adults have been taught since a young age. The same has had a positive ripple through the data security profession.

Sharing threat information can help organizations access data that they would otherwise be unable to obtain. Working together, organizations can improve their security posture by taking advantage of their partners’ expertise, experience, and capabilities. This proactive approach can help keep everyone safer.

To understand why let’s look at an example:

Pretend that you’re a financial services firm with thousands of clients. One of them calls you up and says they just got hit by a ransomware attack. The attacker has encrypted their data, demanding payment in bitcoin to get it back. You’ve never heard of this type of attack before, but luckily you have a good relationship with other financial firms that might have seen something like this before. You reach out and ask for help, sharing everything you know about the incident so far, including what happened, what was affected, who’s working on it, etc. The helpful network of professionals then shares some data from their own network that indicates they saw similar activity happening there as well.

Now both organizations are better prepared against future attacks like this one because they know how they work and how they spread; they also know what kind of damage they can cause.

Identifying Security-Critical Processes

In the event of a security breach, there are certain processes that must be maintained in order to keep essential services running. This list should be given the highest priority.

Each organization is going to have different security-critical processes but some of the more common ones are:

• Policy
• Awareness
• Access
• Monitoring
• Compliance
• Strategy

Developing And Regularly Testing Workarounds or Manual Controls

As hard as MDR or organizational analysts are working to keep bad actors out of company assets, these bad actors are working just as hard to get in. Bad actors are always looking for new ways to attack organizations through vulnerabilities.

When one door is shut, another ten open, which keeps analysts on their toes (and provides proof of how important these professionals are with the number of breaches they thwart on a daily basis).

This door could include phishing attacks or an employee clicking on bad links sent by email from a hacker (We’ve mentioned before that “People” and the “Human Error” are an organization’s biggest threat to security).

They know that if they find one weakness in infrastructure, then they have found their way inside your organization’s perimeter defenses and can begin their attack from there.

It’s important to assess the strength of a network to identify these vulnerabilities.

These assessments can include penetration testing, physical testing, system and network testing, and other facilities’ testing.

It is important for every organization to perform regular vulnerability assessments against its systems and applications, as well as perform penetration tests against its network perimeter defenses.

Ensuring Backup Procedures Are Implemented and Regularly Tested

Business owners should implement robust and effective data backup, disaster recovery, and business continuity plans just in case of a data breach or the organization gets locked out during a ransomware event.

Data backup for organizations should be done on a regular basis. By having procedures in place and regularly testing them, as well as isolating backups from network connections, IT departments and MDRs can help ensure data security.

If data is backed up on a regular basis and a data breach occurs, reinstating a backup is the first step an organization can launch after DFIR procedures have taken place in order to recover from a cyber attack.

Series Conclusion

This series is intended as an educational tool for businesses to get an idea of what needs to take place in order to help protect organizational assets from being breeched.
From people to process to technology, preparing for and mitigating potential cyber threats can be a heavy load to bear for any organization.

Shameless plug here, but that’s where augmenting an existing IT department’s personnel with a mature MDR like CyberMaxx can fill the talent gaps, potentially help companies save on cyber insurance premiums, and ultimately keep company assets from being harmed.

It’s not a matter of if, but when an attack will take place, and how often, because they rarely happen only once to an organization.

Being prepared and ready is important.

The post Preparing for and Mitigating Potential Cyber Threats: Part 3 – Are Best Practices in Place? appeared first on CyberMaxx.

Now it’s time to start going over the overall preparedness of the organization’s team, should a breach happen.

Think of it this way: Is your team prepared for the unthinkable situation?

Prepare Your Organization For Rapid Response

Attitude.

That’s really the first step to preparing any organization. If a culture of being prepared and doing due diligence to make sure the organization is safe is being cultivated within the people, it’s easy to keep the team in the right frame of mind.

A solid foundation is built by getting everyone on board with the company’s policies and procedures.

Next, choosing the people, processes, and technology that best suits the organization will help with preparation. This step entails choosing an appropriate monitor intrusion technology or service that can detect viruses and other intrusions, prevent malware from entering your network, and block attackers who have already gained access or are in the process of attempting an intrusion.

Some Best Practices to be Better Prepared

Cyber security can be a huge challenge for many businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises. The cost of cybercrime can be crippling to a company’s finances.

Here are some ways businesses can prepare for cyber-attacks:

• Employees: Like we’ve said before, and we’ll keep hitting on this subject, should be trained on how to recognize suspicious behavior on the web; they should also know how to report a potential breach of company information without compromising the integrity of the investigation.
• Backup strategy: A backup strategy should be in place so that if the main system goes down due to a cyber-attack or malware, the potential of a total loss of information is lower.
• Network monitoring: Network monitoring can help an organization see what’s happening on the web at any given moment; it will also help notify the correct parties if there are any unusual activity reports coming from outside sources

Why Using an MDR Provider is a Great Solution

The purpose of an MDR provider is to address the problem of cybersecurity skills gaps inside an organization.

Ideally, at a cost that is lower than what a company will need to spend to build its own specialized security team, it tackles more advanced threats that could not be handled in-house.

If an MDR, like CyberMaxx, has a SOC with a team of experts that work 24/7/365, the intention is to augment the in-house IT department and protect their networks and devices – not replace the IT department.

Furthermore, MDR provides access to tools that the organization might not normally have access to.

What Happens if an Intrusion Occurs

That unthinkable situation just occurred. Now what?

If the line of defense has been crossed and an intrusion has taken place, consulting your incident response plan for dealing with potential threats should be the next step.

If a bad actor does manage to get into your network, even if it is only for a few minutes or hours, it could cost your company a lot more than just reputational damage.

If an intrusion should take place, we highly recommend consulting a DFIR team to help with this process:

1. Preparation
2. Identification
3. Containment
4. Eradication
5. Recovery
6. Lessons Learned

Staying Informed

One of the biggest things you can do to keep your organization safe from cyber threats is to stay informed about current cyber threats and malicious techniques.

The best way to stay informed is to keep an eye on the news, social media, and other sources of information. Make sure your team members know what’s going on in their industry so they can share information with you.

Just for instance, in June and July of 2022, North Korea was launching state-sanctioned attacks using the malware Ghost as their main tool. If a team is educated that something like that is coming down the pike, then it knows what to look for.

Be Prepared

Just like Scout’s motto, it’s best to always be prepared. Sure, sometimes a curve ball may be thrown into the mix, but in the end having a plan in place, educating employees, and having tools in place to help detect and remediate will give an organization the upper hand when it comes to potential infiltrations.

And then there is always utilizing an MDR like CyberMaxx to help pick up the slack should it be too much undertaken immediately.

What’s Next

In the last part of this three-part series, we’re going to cover if best practices are in place inside.

Preparing for and Mitigating Potential Cyber Threats: Part 3 – Are Best Practices in Place?

The post Preparing for and Mitigating Potential Cyber Threats: Part 2 – Is Your Team Prepared? appeared first on CyberMaxx.

People are not perfect and are the biggest threat to a company’s assets and the possibility of a data breach.

Human error is almost a certainty when it comes to a bad actor walking through an open door in a network.

As more and more organizations face security threats, they are taking precautionary steps to ensure their safety.

Educating employees and having standard operating procedures to plan for what to do should some of the situations outlined below become a reality.

Increase Education and Vigilance

Organizations need to cultivate a culture of cybersecurity awareness. Since the human factor in the security of the network is a vulnerability, organizations need to make sure that adequate training and tools are available to employees are prepared should a bad actor dial in on them as a possible entry point for a breach.

The most recent Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR) found that 85% of cyberattacks are due to human mistakes, such as clicking on malicious links, sharing passwords, or accidentally deleting files or data.

Do Not Take Chances With Passwords

As cyber threats continue to evolve, the importance of password security has become increasingly clear. In recent years, several high-profile data breaches have been linked to weak passwords, demonstrating just how vulnerable we are to attack.

If you want to keep your data and resources safe from attackers, there are a few things you need to do. First, never give out your login information or personally identifiable information (PII) to anyone. Second, be careful of phishing emails and infected attachments. If you think something might be suspicious, don’t open it. Finally, keep your sensitive information like credit card numbers and IP addresses in a secure place. By following these simple steps, you can help protect yourself from becoming a victim of identity theft or other cybercrimes.

Employ Multi-Factor Authentication Practices

Sometimes having a strong password is not enough to prevent a cyber-attack. As a result, it is essential that organizations and individuals have all the proper tools necessary to protect themselves against cyber threats. This includes using strong passwords and multi-factor authentication (MFA).

Using MFA will help prevent hackers from gaining access to your accounts if they are able to gain access to your username and password. It can also help reduce the likelihood that your account will be compromised in the first place.

MFA can include:

• Something you know – such as a password or PIN (personal identification number)
•  Something you have – such as a device like a mobile phone or wearable device like Google Glass or Apple Watch
• Something we know – such as a security question, answer, or biometric identifier

It is important for organizations to implement MFA practices on all accounts that have access to sensitive information, such as customer records. The most common method for doing so is by using SMS text messages with a one-time code.

Be Vigilant With Email

“Hey Jackie, here is a spreadsheet with the latest forecasting numbers we tallied from the last board meeting. Thanks, Jim”

…Jim is on vacation and your team has agreed to use the central CRM to share data rather than spreadsheets.

Also, Rob’s email is jbratwurst@cybermaxx.com and not jimisthemanbrooooo@gmail.com.

Red flags!

Keeping an eye out for suspicious emails that may have been sent from a source you do not know is one of the best ways to avoid falling into that sandtrap.

Attachments

Bad actors are becoming cleverer all of the time. Opening attachments is an easy way for them to run malware to infect a computer and potentially the company network.

If a suspicious email comes through, do not open any attachments —following an organization’s standard operating procedures, whether that is to flag the email as a phish or just delete it together.

Avoid downloading files from unknown senders and unrecognized sources, as they may contain viruses.

Links

In addition to attachments, links within an email that have come from an unknown source is another way a bad actor can gain access to a computer and install malware.

If you’re ever unsure about whether a link is safe or not, there are a few things you can look for. First, check the URL to see if it looks suspicious. If it’s a long, nonsensical string of characters, it’s probably best to avoid clicking on it.

If you’re concerned about whether a website is safe to visit, there are a few things you can do to check. One is to use Google Safe Browsing, which will tell you if the site has hosted malware in the past 90 days. To use it, just go to the URL: http://google.com/safebrowsing/diagnostic?site= and type in the address of the site you want to check – for example, google.

Do Not Leave Accounts Open

Close background applications when you are not using them, and don’t leave accounts open for long periods of time. Additionally, make sure to keep your operating system up-to-date.

In The End…

In the end, there will always be people…

The potential for human error to lead to infiltrations and breaches is always a concern for businesses. However, by taking steps to educate employees and strengthen passwords and other security measures, the risk of a breach can be greatly reduced.

Organizations can reduce the risk of breaches by doing routine vulnerability scans and having next-generation network protection. By having a mature cyber security posture, organizations can further reduce the likelihood of breaches.

What’s Next

Part 2 in this series: Is Your Team Prepared?

The post Preparing for and Mitigating Potential Cyber Threats: Part 1 – People are the Biggest Threat appeared first on CyberMaxx.

Yes, we at CyberMaxx are fully aware that most information security professionals are familiar with what firewalls are.

Most companies have them installed (it should be ALL companies) and a lot of households have them on home networks (again it should be ALL households).

But, most cybersecurity strategies start with protecting the perimeter of a network and this can be done in a number of ways, such as by using firewalls.

That’s where our conversation leads us to today.

Let’s cover the basics: A firewall is a security measure that helps protect your assets from unauthorized access. Firewalls can be hardware or software-based, and they work by filtering incoming traffic and blocking malicious or unwanted connections.

There are many benefits to installing a firewall and they come in different sizes to accommodate both small and large networks.

Like Ice Cream, there are Many Different Kinds of Firewalls

As we mentioned previously, firewalls come with different features and capabilities since no one network is built identically to the next.

But what are these different kinds of firewalls? Let’s go over a few examples:

• Packet filtering: The system that analyzes and handles data based on the basic components of packets. In order to determine whether a packet should be allowed through, packet filters examine IP addresses and port numbers. Small offices and home offices (SOHO) commonly use this type of firewall because it requires little overhead and still provides some protection against incoming threats.
• Proxy service: The proxy firewall is considered to be the most secure. A proxy firewall filters messages at the application layer, which provides protection for network resources. Although a proxy firewall can increase security levels, it can also affect functionality and speed.
• Stateful inspection: Stateful inspection firewalls monitor real-time network traffic and block unauthorized access to networks. What sets stateful firewalls apart is their capability to monitor traffic states to see if incoming or outbound traffic is part of an established TCP connection/session or not. Not only does it perform packet filtering, but it also monitors packet network sessions.
• Next-Generation Firewall (NGFW): These offer additional capabilities beyond traditional firewalls. NGFW firewalls are a combination of application-level firewalls and stateful firewalls. They provide other features like Deep Packet Inspection, IPS, and malware filtering.

Firewalls: Do they cover all security needs?

Firewalls are a critical component to protecting networks and devices as a whole. Think of firewalls as the gatekeepers that prevent unauthorized access to your network and protect your data from hackers. Where the access control list lets you into the club, firewalls are the big, hulking doorkeepers that are holding the list and letting people in and out.

Network and device protection can be a multi-layered endeavor, of which firewalls are only one part. Firewalls play an essential role in security, but they cannot protect against all cyber threats. New threats are constantly emerging, and firewalls can only block known threats. This means that it is possible for a particular threat to slip past your firewall undetected if the system doesn’t recognize the danger.

This is where a managed solution like CyberMaxx can be an upgraded security measure going beyond what a firewall can provide for protection. Using an IDS or IPS solution for network cybersecurity protection can add another layer of barriers from threat actors looking to gain access.

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From on-premise cyber security to cloud-based computing, our MAXX Network intrusion detection and prevention systems provides around-the-clock cyber security monitoring to help your organization combat today’s advanced known threats.

With over 20+ years of threat intelligence experience, serving thousands of locations across the United States and internationally, CyberMaxx has the people, process & technology to help protect any network.

Video Transcript

As threats to networks continue to evolve, it is becoming increasingly important to take proactive steps to protect your assets.

That’s where MAXX Network from CyberMaxx can help.

From on-premise to cloud-based computing, our MAXX Network intrusion detection and prevention systems…

…provides around-the-clock security monitoring to help your organization combat today’s advanced known threats.

• With proprietary technology…
• …a team of network security professionals that work around-the-clock so you can sleep peacefully at night…
• …strong cloud support for AWS and Azure environments…
• …dramatically more threat prevention and protection than a next-generation firewall…
• …and unmatched threat intelligence…

CyberMaxx identifies hostile activity in real-time and takes immediate action to thwart threatening network traffic.

Growing fast?

MAXX Network is designed to nimbly grow alongside your business…

which means when you grow, we grow with you.

Unlike other solutions, CyberMaxx’s MAXX Network is tailored to your budget and needs, making it the perfect choice to help your organization combat both present and future risks.

Come see why some of the largest organizations across the US are moving to CyberMaxx’s team of experts and intrusion detection and prevention systems.

CyberMaxx – Move your network closer to a threat-free existence with white glove security coverage. It’s a Win-Win.

The post MAXX Network – Move Your Network Closer to a Threat-free Existence [VIDEO] appeared first on CyberMaxx.

This represents a 10% increase from the average cost in 2019, which was $3.86 million. Given the potentially devastating financial impact of a data breach, it is essential for businesses to take steps to protect their data and prevent breaches from occurring.

Technologies like IDS (intrusion detection system) and IPS (intrusion prevention system) have become more commonplace (This technology is still a part of network detection and response (NDR) services) and provide round-the-clock protection against potential threats, making them an essential part of any comprehensive security setup.

IDS/IPS systems have been the popular means of protecting IT systems and managing cybersecurity threats and known attacks because they deliver robustly personalized protection.

If you’re new to IDS and IPS, you probably want to learn more about what these systems are and why you need them.

What are IDS/IPS?

IDS and IPS come in to help detect and prevent destructive cyber attacks. IDS and IPS are quite similar to data breach response systems and often work in conjunction with one another to ensure those network threats are prevented and managed effectively.

Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS)

Monitors your network for suspicious activity and reports to create data sets. When an IDS system detects a potential threat or something suspicious, it will flag this with a warning notice. Action can then be taken in a strategic manner against the potential threat, independently of the IDS system. Unlike an IPS system, it doesn’t act as the middleman between the sender and receiver of information. An IDS system is more of a behind-the-scenes reporting system that provides information on which to base decisions.

Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS)

Monitors network traffic by sitting behind the firewall and keeping any malicious attackers away from the rest of your network. IPS systems are able to recognize patterns in network traffic and act on them immediately so as to prevent malicious attacks. In doing this, IPS is an active security resource – that is, it responds to real-time data in order to stop cyber security attacks once a risk has been detected. Newer IPS systems rely on pre-programmed rules that allow them to take action. Whilst their main aim is to detect anomalies, once they find them, IPS systems are able to block IP addresses and forward the relevant malicious traffic. This way, they are more active (and proactive) than Intrusion Detection Systems.

Why are IDS/IPS needed?

As much as we would like to believe otherwise, there is simply no such thing as an impenetrable network or a foolproof firewall. Threat actors are constantly finding new ways to exploit vulnerabilities and bypass defenses. In many cases, they will use other malware or social engineering techniques to obtain user credentials that grant them access to networks and data.

IDS/IPS technologies are crucial for security, both at the network edge and within data centers. Their ability to stop attackers while they are still in the process of gathering information about a network is invaluable. This technology is in place to ensure IT personnel is notified when an attack or network intrusion might be taking place – monitoring both inbound and outbound traffic on the network, as well as data traversing between systems within the network.

IDS/IPS Are Still Relevant

There is no one-size-fits-all solution to cybersecurity, but having the right people and processes in place is crucial to keeping your organization safe. IDS/IPS services provide the ability to take quick action when your network is compromised, which can help prevent further damage.

Organizations should take steps to protect their networks from intrusions. It’s a recommended best practice to include placing network IDS/IPS devices at all points of entry and host IDS/IPS devices on key servers. A wireless IPS can also help to thwart attacks that exploit wireless Internet connections.

CyberMaxx utilizes IDS/IPS technology with the MAXX Network network detection and response (NDR) service.

MAXX Network delivers non-stop protection against malicious behavior, making sure data security professionals can sleep soundly at night knowing the organization’s networks are safe and secure.

The post What Is IDS/IPS And Why Do You Need It? appeared first on CyberMaxx.

Different Types of Security Controls in Cybersecurity

In order to effectively secure a system, it is important to understand all of the different types of security controls available and how they can be used together to form a comprehensive defense.

• Firewalls
• Intrusion detection and prevention systems (IDPS)
• Access control lists (ACLs)
• Cryptographic technologies

The Purpose of Each Type of Security Control

Each of these controls protects against different threats and vulnerabilities, so it is important to understand the purpose of each one.

• Firewalls: A firewall is a security system that helps protect your computer from unauthorized users who might try to gain access to your network. Firewalls can be used to keep internet users without access from being able to connect to private networks that are connected to the internet.
• Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems (IDPS): An Intrusion Detection and Prevention System (IDPS) is a network security measure that monitors traffic for signs of an attack. If an IDPS detects suspicious activity, it will alert administrators so they can investigate and take appropriate action. IDPS solutions work by monitoring traffic for patterns that match known attacks.
• Access Control Lists (ACLs): An access control list, or ACL, is a set of rules that determines who is allowed to access certain digital environments. There are two types of ACLs: Filesystem ACLs and Application ACLs.Filesystem ACLs filter access to files and directories, while network ACLs restrict traffic flowing in and out of a network. Each type of ACL contains rules that determine who is allowed to access a particular system and what privileges they have.
• Cryptographic Technologies: Cryptography is a technique used to protect information from unauthorized access. Encryption is a process of transforming readable data into an unreadable format, using a key. This makes it difficult for anyone without the key to deciphering the encrypted information. Authentication refers to verifying that a person or thing is what it’s supposed to be via password-based logins, biometric identification, and more.

But, Can They Work Together?

Organizations should consider their individual needs when determining which type of security controls will work best for them. However, using multiple types of security controls in combination is often the most effective way to defend against cyberattacks.

Just imagine having an IDPS system being managed for you in conjunction with firewalls and ACLs. The combinations are endless as these four controls are just some of the many ways an organization can be protected with cybersecurity.

The post What are the Different Types of Security Controls in Cybersecurity? appeared first on CyberMaxx.

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Video Transcript

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