Small isn’t safe.
What if I told you small and midsized businesses aren’t safe from cyber-attacks? In fact, 81% of all breaches happen to SMBs.
Here’s a reality check. Many owners of SMBs learn the hard way that they can be ideal targets for cybercriminals.
Let’s look at a real-life example to set this idea in stone.
In 2018, John’s employee received an email from what seemed to be a vendor. The email was about an unpaid invoice. John’s employee opened the attachment.
It didn’t take long for John to realize his employee made a devasting mistake.
With one click, chaos.
The attachment downloaded ransomware on the employee’s computer. The employee got locked out completely.
To add salt to the wound, the ransomware spread throughout the company’s network.
John’s organization came to a halt. For two weeks, his employees couldn’t work, and customers couldn’t buy his product.
Before all this, John never thought about cybersecurity. But following these episodes, it’s become an unfortunate focal point for him.
Here’s the sad truth. They could have avoided this attack with the right security measures in place.
Businesses face cybersecurity risk every day. It’s a part of getting business done, especially in our digital world. And a business’s ability to understand risk is what differentiates them from a cybercrime victim.
So, the 1st step towards better cybersecurity is a risk assessment.
What’s a Risk Assessment?
A cybersecurity risk assessment identifies technical vulnerabilities within a company. The purpose of the assessment is to show what assets are susceptible to cyber threats.
How does a Risk Assessment work?
In most situations, a managed security service provider (MSSP) conducts the risk assessment. To learn more about MSSPs, click here.
Risks assessments vary from MSSPs, but most follow this simple outline:
Company Overview
This is a meet and greet. The MSSP will sit down with you to discuss your current IT infrastructure.
Investigation
A certified cybersecurity specialist will now review your network. During the review, the specialist will uncover and document any security issues. They will check your worksite, workstations, mobile devices, cloud, backup, and network.
Documentation & Reports
The MSSP will provide you with all the technical documentation from the assessment. These reports will uncover your IT infrastructures strengths and weaknesses.
Now, it’s significant to note that risk assessments are not a one and done deal. It is best practice to periodically conduct risk assessments.
Why undertake periodic assessments?
To put it in everyday terms, a cybersecurity risk assessment is like a blood screening. The goal of a blood screening is to catch any ailments before they become a larger problem. The doctor performs the screening periodically because a test from 10 years ago isn’t going to do you much good.
The same is true for a cybersecurity risk assessment.
Your IT infrastructure changes over time, opening it up to new vulnerabilities. And new methods of attack unravel daily, so what was secure yesterday may not be secure today.
Let’s now talk about benefits.
Are you still not convinced your small business needs a risk assessment? Then, let’s talk about the benefits:
Discover if you have been compromised
You might not know unless you look, and you will sleep better at night if you know.
Determine new security requirements
With an understanding of an organization’s weaknesses, you can plan your next move. A risk assessment can determine what the next steps to take are to eradicate these weaknesses. Then, you’ll be able to focus on strengthening your system’s security.
Make smart purchases
The information a risk assessment provides can help an organization budget for security appropriately. Once aware of its weaknesses, an organization can allocate resources for the solutions. For instance, these details can prevent overspending on a problem that does not need an expensive solution.
Improve planning
An organization must understand its current security risks to safely plan for the future. Thus, the strengths and weaknesses identified by an assessment can develop new plans and policies.
Document due diligence
Finally, a risk assessment can also confirm an organization’s efforts to enforce proper security. They may act as evidence to government regulators, insurance companies, and business partners. A risk assessment shows you did your due diligence when it comes to security.
How do I order a risk assessment?
Are you ready to take the first 1st step towards better cybersecurity? Great, good on you!
Because SMBs need security now more than ever, MRW Systems does offer risk assessments through our MSSP, NetGarde.
We’ve set up a special contact form, so you can talk with a security expert TODAY.
To request a risk assessment, please follow this link.
And as always, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call us at 410-751-7111. We look forward to helping your business stay safe.
Until next time,
Michael Wolinski
CEO