Part of maintaining a robust security policy involves routinely conducting tests to get an overview of its strengths and weaknesses. While it’s tempting to employ a “set it and forget” mentality, most security networks require rigorous testing and oversight to ensure they’re operating well.
That’s because all networks are likely to have some level of vulnerability in their design, and it’s those weaknesses malicious third parties hunt down. If those vulnerabilities aren’t fixed, malware, ransomware attacks, hacks, DDoS, and a whole mass of nasty problems can occur and cause considerable damage.
So could your business benefit from security assessments, especially related to IT? Absolutely. If you’re not convinced, we’ll list a few reasons why it’s important.
The first is that an assessment considers all points of liability or all at-risk assets. These are primarily digital assets, ranging from sever integrity to the credit card information stored on those servers. Then there are the various devices connected to the network, PC installations, and other pieces of hardware.
Sometimes seeing those numbers serves as a wakeup call. Consider those assets and their total worth, and you’ll see how much you could potentially lose in damages. If a cyberattack corrupts the software on all of your desktops, you’re looking at thousands in repair fees.
From there, an assessment creates a quick snapshot of your total security competency. This overview can expand on any weaknesses currently present in your network. All infrastructure is vulnerable to some extent because malware is constantly evolving.
Once you have the overview, your company will understand what areas are in danger. Firewall weak points, outdated software/firmware, unsafe security practices, exposed personal identify information, and so on will all come to light.
The assessment will also consider external threats, such as mobile devices or remote workers who access critical information in different areas. This will provide a complete overview of the current state of your IT security.
After that, it’s a matter of modifying security practices, shoring up weak spots, and updating security solutions to deal with these potential threats. That includes how network connectivity is handled and how sensitive information is stored.
The bottom line is that you won’t know what work you need to do to maintain strong security measures without an assessment. Businesses often invest heavily in expensive security protection measures but do not quantify their effectiveness. Though it can take time, testing security efficiency is just as important as the actual deployment, if not more so.
Particularly if you’ve noticed critical breaches, malware attacks, downtime, or other problems related to IT security, it’s a good idea to conduct an assessment. Many third parties offer them for free to give an immediate snapshot of your company’s overall state while providing a roadmap to get everything back on track. target=”blank_”
