Awareness training in cyber security
Geplaatst op: 13 December 2023
Topics such as cybersecurity and governance play an increasingly important role in our society. Our daily life increasingly takes place online, whether business or personal. This means new risks and new challenges for organizations dealing with sensitive data and information from both employees and customers. Cyber attacks happen daily, whether it’s obtaining passwords or bank details or CEO/CFO fraud in which case a malicious individual poses as the CEO/CFO. Well-trained employees recognize these types of issues immediately and thus prevent damage. Is your organization well prepared for these risks?
Are you aware of the dangers?
Although more attention is paid to a safe digital workplace, cybercrime continues to increase. The number one cause? Human mistakes. Human employees are the organisation’s weak link when it comes to security. That’s why it’s important to make employees aware of the risks and dangers of cybercrime and make them aware of what they themselves can do to keep company data safe.
Training and awareness
Many organizations don’t know where to start when it comes to creating security awareness. As a result, training of personnel is often on hold. A shame! Here are a few tips that can help create an awareness program that can prevent 90% of the attacks:
1. Create trust
The first and most important step in creating a safe environment is trust. Give employees the feeling that they can share their insecurities. Especially when there is a security problem, employees must feel safe enough to report the problem.
2. Make security awareness a regular part of the job
Let’s face it, one cybersecurity training a year isn’t going to cut it. Make it a permanent part of the task package. A great example of testing the knowledge of employees and keeping them alert is by using a simulated phishing email program. Employees will receive random phishing emails and earn points when they recognize the mail as phishing. In addition, a notification is also activated when someone would be in danger if it were a real phishing email. Bijvoorbeeld wanneer er op onbetrouwbare links geklikt wordt.
3. Cyber security is for everyone
Cyber security is a subject everyone in the office should be concerned with. Whether you have knowledge of IT or not. It’s important to make employees aware of the risks and dangers. This means highlighting small actions such as logging in and off your laptop when leaving the workplace. Start small, expand later.
Want to know more or apply awareness training yourself?
Creating security awareness starts with good conversation and a few essential questions. OpenSight is happy to help you with this. Where is the organization at risk? What are the current priorities when it comes to cybersecurity? Together we look at which issues should be tackled first. Contact us and prevent your staff from falling victim to a cyberattack or hack.
Avoid falling victim to any of these cybersecurity risks 2022
Geplaatst op: 13 December 2023
Cybercrime is an increasing concern for organizations everywhere. A large part of the working population has worked from home in the past two years and is continuing to do so. Because of this, many business conversations and activities have taken and are taking place online. This opens a window for data breaches, leaking of sensitive data or worse: cybercrime. In this article you can read about the most common cybersecurity risks for organizations and how these risks can be minimized or even avoided.
Malware
Malware is an umbrella term for software like viruses, spyware, and Trojan horses. Malware usually ends up on a computer or network when employees click on a link or document that contains this software. Because the work traffic of many organizations has been from home in recent years, we have seen an increase in malware attacks. The name malware comes from the two words “malicious” and “software”.
Ransomware
Ransomware is a nasty form of malware. This one ensures that people within the organization can no longer access important documents or processes that are essential to keep the organization running. Often a large ransom is demanded from the organization to regain access. That’s where the name ransomware comes from.
Phishing
Phishing is probably the most common form of cybercrime now. Both privately and professionally, we see that more and more people are falling victim to the psychological game that hackers play during a phishing attack. They often pose as a well-known supplier or company and then ask for important details. Remote working has given a boost to the increase of phishing.
Password hacks
Password hacks are a little different of nature. These attacks use intelligent programs that can guess weak passwords. A different method of gaining access to passwords of employees is by key logging. Here, common keystrokes on a computer are ‘remembered’ without permission. Employees that use the same password to get access to multiple platforms are at higher risk to get hacked.
Tips to prevent a cyber attack
As an organization, there’s multiple things that can help prevent a cyberattack. Below a few tips:
Make staff aware of the risks
One of the easiest but most important things you can do is making all employees aware of the security risks when they must handle sensitive data or log on to sensitive systems. Train employees and teach them the basic principles of cyber security. This includes creating strong passwords, raising awareness about various phishing techniques, and keeping important security software up to date.
Use safety tools
There are many different tools and programs that can help organizations improve their security. Two-step verification is an easy-to-implement tool that prevents hackers from gaining access to the system. It’s also advisable to use a firewall to keep snoopers out. Another simple tip: make sure the computers used by employees are always up to date. There are plenty of tools, so use them!
Invest in a cybersecurity expert
Our last tip: Hire a cybersecurity expert. These experts can train employees, look at the cybersecurity protocols and, where necessary, think along with the digital transformation of an organization. After all, a well-thought-out plan is the basis for rock-solid security.
Risk Management Framework: An essential process for cyber security
Geplaatst op: 5 December 2023
Risk management in cybersecurity is an essential process for any organization seeking to protect its digital assets from threats. The world is getting increasingly dependent on technology, and the need for robust cyber security measurements is growing. In this blog we discuss the risk management approach in cyber security and how it can help organizations to protect themselves from cyber threats.
By taking a risk-based approach to data and systems security, companies can strike the right balance between risk and reward to achieve their goals. Effective cybersecurity risk management ensures that the organization’s technology, systems, and information are adequately secured, focusing resources on the most critical areas. By embedding a robust risk management approach throughout the organization, companies can effectively manage cyber security risks while complementing their overall risk management strategy.
What is risk management for cyber security?
Cyber security risk management is a process that revolves around identifying, assessing, and prioritizing cyber security risks, and the implementation of strategies to minimize these risks. The goal is to enable organizations to make informed decisions about the level of risk they are willing to accept and take appropriate measures to protect their digital assets.
Risk management is an ongoing process that involves identifying, assessing, and managing risks throughout the organization. This process is critical to ensuring that the organization’s cyber security strategy is aligned with overall business goals and objectives.
Risk management approach in cyber security
The risk management approach to cyber security includes the following steps:
- Risk identification
This step involves identifying potential cyber security risks the organization may face. This can be done through a comprehensive assessment of the organization’s digital assets, including data, systems, networks, and applications. - Risk assessment
Once risks are identified, they should be assessed based on their likelihood of occurrence and potential impact. This can be done by analyzing historical data, vulnerability scanning and penetration testing. - Risk prioritizing
After risks have been assessed, they should be prioritized based on their severity and potential impact on the organization’s activities. Risks that pose a high threat to the organization’s operations should be given the highest priority. - Risk mitigation
The next step is to implement strategies to mitigate the identified risks. This can be done by implementing security measures such as firewalls, antivirus software, intrusion detection systems and access controls. - Risk monitoring
Risk management is an ongoing process and it’s essential to regularly monitor and evaluate the organization’s cybersecurity posture. This can be done by conducting regular vulnerability assessments, penetration tests and security audits.
Benefits of a risk management approach in cyber security
A well-executed risk management process can have many benefits for an organization, for example:
- Improved security.
By establishing and assessing potential risks, an organization can implement fitting controls and security measures to protect its assets and improve its overall security posture. - Improved compliance with regulations
A risk-based approach to cyber security can help organizations comply with various regulations and standards such as GDPR, PCI-DSS, ISO 27001 and others. - Lower costs
By focussing on the most critical risks and implementing appropriate controls, an organization can reduce the overall cost of cyber security while ensuring that resources are assigned in the most effective manner. - Increased resilience
Effective risk management can improve an organization’s ability to respond to and recover from cyber incidents and ensure that the organization can continue to function and deliver its services even in the face of cyber threats. - Increased stakeholder confidence
Effective risk management for cyber security can increase stakeholder confidence in an organization’s ability to protect its assets and maintain the confidentiality, integrity and availability of its information.
It’s important to take the broader context into account with managing cybersecurity risks. This means understanding your business priorities and goals and aligning cyber risk management with those goals. By thinking about the risks you’re willing to take with technology to achieve your goals, you can make informed decisions about cyber security risk management.
Effective management is essential for well-functioning risk management. This means that you understand how managing and communicating cyber risk fits within existing governance structures that manage other types of business risks. Your approach to cyber risk management must be effectively governed and tailored to the specific needs of your organization.
It’s also crucial to ensure that your organization has an adequate policy that outlines the risk management strategy for the organization, integrating cyber security considerations into other organizational policies where appropriate. The board must collectively understand the importance of cyber security in supporting the organization’s overall goals and have the necessary information to make informed and timely decisions.
Effective communication is a crucial aspect
- Articulate your approach
To effectively communicate cyber risk and risk management, it’s crucial to clearly articulate your approach to staff and decision makers. This ensures that they understand how cyber security risks are managed and are better able to make informed decisions. - Coordinated communication.
It’s also important to ensure that your communication about cyber risks is aligned with how your organization communicates about other types of risks, such as legal or financial risks. This can help integrate cyber security risk management into the organization’s broader risk management strategy. - Clear and sensible use of language.
Clear and sensible use of language is important when communicating about cyber risks. Every label or score must be explained properly in order to avoid misinterpretations and misconceptions. For example, using an “average” risk label without clear criteria for what that means can lead to inconsistent interpretations within the organization. By communicating in a clear way and by using sensible language, you can ensure that everyone within your organization has a consistent understanding of cyber risk and risk management.
How to improve your Risk Management Framework.
- Continuous and iterative
It’s important to remember that risk management is continuous and iterative. As technology and the business environment continue to evolve, threats and opportunities may change. Risk management approaches must adapt accordingly. - Review risks regularly
Regularly reviewing risks is important in order to ensure that the methods chosen to manage them remain effective and appropriate.. You should be especially vigilant in reviewing risk assessments when significant changes occur such as a shift in the threats an organization faces or changes in the technology used to deliver and manage a system or service. - Regular evaluation of methods, frameworks and tools
In addition to evaluating risks, it is also important to regularly review the methods, frameworks and tools used for risk management. These must remain effective within the business context and appropriate for the ever-changing landscape of cybersecurity and threats. By continuously improving their approach to risk management, organizations can ensure that they are better equipped to effectively manage cyber risks.
Conclusion
In short: risk management in terms of cyber security is vital for protecting organisations against cyber threats. A risk-based approach enables organizations to identify, assess and prioritize risks and apply strategies to mitigate or reduce these risks. By adopting a risk management approach to cyber security, organizations can make informed decisions about their cyber security strategy, improve their cyber security posture and reduce the likelihood of a successful cyber attack.
OpenSight Summer Series
During the OpenSight Summer Series, we publish weekly blogs that elaborate on the following topics:
- Risk management
- Engagement and training
- Asset management
- Architecture and configuration
- Vulnerability management
- Identity and access management
- Information security
- Logging and monitoring
- Incident management
- Supply chain security
By implementing the security measures outlined in these ten steps, organizations can reduce the likelihood of cyberattacks and lessen the impact of potential incidents.Learn more about the OpenSight Summer Series here!
ChatGPT and privacy
Geplaatst op: 5 December 2023
Privacy and AI
Privacy is one of the most important human rights. It gives the right to individuals to protect their personal life and information from unlawful interference by others, including the government. This right includes various aspects such as the right to protection of personal data, the right to control personal information, and the right to personal autonomy and freedom. However, due to increasing data collection by AI and the growing power of emerging technologies, individuals in both the public and private sectors will increasingly be tracked and monitored, often without enough anonymity or consent.
ChatGPT unethically processes your data
ChatGPT uses large amounts of text data collected from various sources, including public websites and social media While the data is anonymized, there is a chance that sensitive information such as names, locations, and personal opinions could be incorporated. Yes, you read that right, private information made publicly available. As cybersecurity experts, it’s therefore our job to make users aware of the privacy risks associated with the use of AI models such as ChatGPT. But that’s not all… But that’s not all…
Discrimination and racism: AI systems like ChatGPT are filled with biases.
Al machine learning models, including AI models that perform specific tasks, are trained based on datasets, i.e. mountains of data and information on which the model bases its output. It is the only way to get the “intelligence” of an AI as close as possible to that of humans, at least that’s what the researchers of the AI system claim. ChatGPT, for example, is trained with more than 300 billion words, that’s about 570 GB of data. That’s exactly where the problem lies.
When you harvest large, unsorted data sets from the internet, it is inevitable that they’ll contain some form of biased information. This information then influences the models. Even though researchers do use filters to prevent AI-models like ChatGPT from providing false information after collecting data, these filters are not 100% waterproof. This can cause harmful biases, or worse: ChatGPT can generate answers that are plainly racist or discriminatory.
It is also important to point out that the data on which ChatGPT generates responses is outdated. In short, the data does not reflect where society currently stands in its development and progress. And, perhaps the most important: Even the researchers and developers themselves are often biased. This is because the world of tech simply is an extremely homogeneous sector dominated by, yes, none other than ‘white men’.
If we continue to ignore the privacy risks and ethical issues when using ChatGPT, among others, we are contributing to a greater invasion of our own privacy and injustice. It’s important that users take their responsibility and protect their own privacy. In doing so, they should also be aware of the ethical implications when using ChatGPT.
How to protect yourself
If you still want to use ChatGPT, it is essential to acknowledge the limitations of ChatGPT andto take responsibility for the contents that are generated and analysed under the influence of this type of technology. In addition, there are two other important measures that you can take yourself to better guard your privacy:
- 1. Avoid sharing sensitive information with ChatGPT: When getting started in ChatGPT, we recommend that you only share non-sensitive information in the prompts and do not provide any personal information. Do not share any pictures or videos, and certainly no contact details.
- 2. Do not use ChatGPT for processing sensitive information: It is also wise to disregard ChatGPT when you need to process sensitive information, like responding to emails or processing personal data. This will prevent the AI from using your private information for learning purposes and or sharing it with other users.
Remain aware of the privacy risks and take the necessary measures to protect your privacy. Do you want to know more about how to protect your data online? One of our experts will be happy to help you on your way!