What are the best practices for protecting your infrastructure against data loss risks?

Regularly back up critical data, test backups, and store them securely. Implement strict access controls, encryption, and monitor for anomalies. Train employees on security, keep systems updated, and have an incident response plan in place.

Regularly keeping updated/incremental data backup which needs to be Ransomware free, Safeguarded and Immutable Backups depending upon the criticality of data.

1) Define what are the "keys to the castle" so that you know what value your data has if lost. 2) Define how that data should be protected at rest, in transit, and have a backup plan based on the importance. 3) Implement the backup plan, but more importantly, test it to ensure that you can recover to an acceptable state for your enterprise.

Best Practices Regularly backing up your data is the foundation of any effective data loss prevention strategy. Ensure that all critical data is backed up at regular intervals, and consider implementing automated backup solutions to minimize the risk of human error. Store backups in multiple locations, including offsite or in the cloud, to protect against physical damage to on-premises infrastructure. Define a Backup Retention Policy: Establish a backup retention policy to determine how long you retain different versions of your data. This policy should align with your business requirements, compliance regulations, and industry best practices. Develop a disaster recovery strategy to minimize downtime in case of data loss.

It's important to tailor your backup strategy to your business needs. Increasingly, for example, this means some form of real-time back-up in addition to periodical snapshots. This can be accomplished well with write-ahead-logging or other forms of replayable logging. Compared with replication this avoids scenarios where the main database and the replica are both damaged. You can't fully evaluate any strategy, without tested and documented recovery procedures, risks include inability to recover, overlong recovery time and unforeseen implications on other systems. Also remember that every backup carries its own security risks, and make sure that these are also addressed.

Divide your perimeters in two: - Long-Range (attack carried through public IP) - Short-Range (think Wifi, Bluetooth, NFC, physical) Inside each perimeter, two populations: - Users are targeted - Machines are targeted Using this simple framework, it's easier to visualize and explain who you defend from and with which budget.

Access control is a critical component in safeguarding sensitive data from unauthorised access and potential breaches. By implementing robust access management systems, organisations can ensure that only authorised individuals and systems have the appropriate permissions to view, modify, or delete specific data. This not only protects against internal threats but also mitigates the risk of external attacks. Access control mechanisms, such as role-based access control (RBAC) or multi-factor authentication (MFA), establish layers of defense, making it harder for malicious actors to compromise sensitive information. This is the primary focus as other security methods may still allow access to data if access control is not maintained.

Access control is a paramount requirement for data loss risk, this would also restrict who has access to what resources. In addition to generic access control mechanisms, organizations can implement data classification scheme where they define the classification level of resources and the who or what has clearance to access those resources. To implement a successful access control mechanism, a solid authentication mechanism is essential. The authentication process should include multifactor authentication as it is a necessity nowadays. Hence, a solid authentication mechanism in coupled with a good access control would provide a great defense against data loss risk.

First and the foremost things towards data protection is to classify the information and accordingly apply control to protect it. Also regular monitoring will help protect the data.

Access control is a basic yet another pivotal step in information security, which focuses more on confidentiality at the same time adding towards others in the CIA triad. Simply putting, it is the regulation and limiting access to business resources. Benefits would include data safeguarding, data confidentiality, resource optimization, user accountability and many more.

Ransomware is not an attack method. It's the monetization of your technical debt at the highest price. Yet, it relies on known methods, phishing, credential reuse/bruteforce/stuffing and vulnerability exploitation. It's mainly made on distance (not at your door using radiowaves), so it relies on Public IP addresses to try to exploit unattended CVE, logic faults, weak credentials, and abusing users by email or phone. Training, MFA, XDR, remote backup, IPS/IDS, Blocklists of known threats, and anti-phishing products are the way to go.

Encrypting backups is crucial for secure and rapid data recovery, ensuring that sensitive information remains protected against unauthorized access. Advanced encryption enables swift decryption during recovery, minimizing downtime and maintaining business continuity. This practice safeguards data integrity while supporting efficient operational resilience.

Encryption is a crucial phase but if not done/managed properly, could prove less effective. For instance, the use of weak algorithms, poor key management, design flaws in the encryption software, or even the use of outdated software versions can all weaken confidentiality. Even if the encryption part is done aptly, but the storage(data@rest) or endpoints(data@transit) are not secured properly could lead to a passive assault leading to a definite fault over time, if left unchecked for a considerable duration.

Attention, le chiffrement n'a pas que des avantages. Il augmente la confidentialité et l'intégrité mais dégrade la disponibilité. Donc chiffrez vos données à protéger, mais n'oubliez pas de sauvegarder les clefs ;-)

A ransomware attack is essentially free but unauthorized encryption at rest. Joke aside, the challenge lies in ensuring that only the correct processes encrypt your data. Ultimately, Application Control, combined with other malware protection measures, are important to ensure data security against the threat of ransomware.

Patching is one of the important part but it needs to be very specific and need to know all the updated feature before applying it. As sometimes it causes backward compatibility issues or any other critical app will stop working. Never perform patching without studying it thoroughly. Patching is a mandatory requirement to make the infrastructure safer.

software updates play a crucial role in safeguarding organizations against cyberattacks and ensuring the integrity of their data. By prioritizing regular and prompt software updates, organizations can proactively address security vulnerabilities, prevent malware infections, and enhance system stability, ultimately fostering a secure and resilient IT environment.

Ensure all softwares running on the systems/machines(local or remote) are running the latest stable versions. Also, be aware of the latest security related patches running on the latest updated software.

In order to bolster the security of my systems, I would make it a priority to regularly and promptly update all software components. Software updates, which include patches and fixes, play a crucial role in addressing bugs, vulnerabilities, and performance issues.

Only auto patched software is good software. Pathing in rings it is nice to have, but don't make that perfection stands in the way of just patching your software.

Employee awareness is of the important role that everyone needs to understand. Most of the attacks will be done via end user because they will not have awareness with the new ongoing scam trends. weekly or monthly basis user awareness trainings should be conducted.

Ein weiterer wichtiger Punkt ist, eine Kultur der Sicherheit im Unternehmen zu f?rdern. Es reicht nicht aus, dass die Mitarbeiter nur die Regeln kennen; sie müssen verstehen, warum diese Regeln wichtig sind. Mitarbeitende sollten sich wohl fühlen, Fragen zu stellen oder Bedenken zu ?u?ern, ohne Angst vor Konsequenzen. Auch das Management sollte in die Schulungen einbezogen werden. Wenn die Führungsebene Sicherheit ernst nimmt, folgt der Rest des Unternehmens diesem Beispiel.

Security is everyone’s responsibility in an organization. The best sensors and technology can always be circumvented by the collective negligence of the personnel utilizing the system. Conversely, a unified staff of security aware individuals will be looking out for IOCs and reporting them regularly. As the staff matures, the amount of false positives will also decrease. Everyone is a safety officer.

Educate employees on security best practices and raise awareness about the risks of data loss. Regular training helps create a security-conscious culture within the organization.

I can say that security awareness is a key factor for data secuirty policy and having incident response plan is major factor as well

Schedule frequent backups of critical data.Implement the principle of least privilege, granting only necessary access to users.Use strong authentication methods, like multi-factor authentication.Encrypt sensitive data both in transit and at rest to protect it from unauthorized access.Conduct penetration testing to identify and address potential weaknesses.Train staff on cybersecurity best practices.Develop a incident response plan to swiftly address and mitigate data loss incidents.Use firewalls detection/prevention systems to safeguard against unauthorised access. Keep software and hardware up to date to patch vulnerabilities.Restrict access to server rooms and data center. Implement robust monitoring systems to detect unusual activities.

As NCX Group's CEO, my 22 years in cybersecurity consulting have highlighted the fallout of inadequate business continuity planning. Our team's support during crises like 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina underscores the need for robust disaster preparedness. While Ponemon Institute Research cites 62% of businesses without a Business Continuity Plan (BCP), our assessments suggest it's near 75%. This gap is concerning given the potential repercussions. A strong BCP should comprise an organized communications plan and defined BIA. Simply having a plan isn't enough; regular testing and updates are crucial for its efficiency during real crises. It's not just best practice—it's vital in today's unpredictable business environment.

Organizations must continuously monitor and adapt their DRPs and BCPs to address evolving threats and changing business needs. Regular reviews and updates ensure that plans remain relevant and effective in the face of emerging challenges. By embracing a proactive approach to disaster preparedness, organizations can minimize the impact of disruptions, safeguard critical data, and maintain business continuity. By implementing comprehensive DRPs and BCPs, organizations can demonstrate resilience and adaptability in the face of unforeseen events, ensuring the long-term success of their operations.

Run a training session and simulation for distaste recovery plan once or twice a year to be really well prepared for it. You might have the perfect procedure but without best practice implementation.

Ideally these locations should be in a separate geographical location to reduce the risk of your backup location being affected by the same natural, or manmade, disaster.

Implementing zero trust with least privilege access, multi-factor authentication, robust Privileged Access Management, Data Loss Prevention for data encryption and access policies, and AI-driven Endpoint and Network Detection and Response, supported by immutable storage, enhances layered defense. This architecture restricts access, monitors privileged users, and protects sensitive data. Behavioral analytics detect threats swiftly, while immutable storage aids recovery. Integration ensures controlled access and response to breaches. Continuous improvement involves user education and practiced responses guided by the principle: never trust, always verify.

Monitoring user behavior is key as sometimes data loss could be an insider threat or compromised credential of a user. Implementing point tools like DLP, IAM can help but building a insider threat program using a UEBA tools can consolidate the different indicators from these point tools and present the true picture when there is a risk of an insider threat or compromised credentials. Recovering from a potential data loss is also something that needs to be implemented by organizations and having a robust backup and restore strategy is key. This includes not only taking periodic backups of organisation data but also testing the restore of the backed up data.

- Every time you go to the whiteboard, use a fixed game approach when making decisions on your infrastructure.. - Remind yourself that there will always be a data breach tomorrow.. & a natural disaster yesterday.. - You may notice a resilience in the outcome of your design… Decentralize & silo your IAM & Infrastructure management teams.. Focus on resilience by setting expectations that there will be data loss, prevention is Important, however, proper mitigation of exposure to a breach can make or break your business… Hybridize disaster recovery through segmentation of backup vendors and technology products used for your DR solution.. 2 egg basket approach..

Custom telemetry services and monitoring tools to monitor data. Also, implementing tools such as Data Loss Prevention would be an important layer of security.

Test your code and conduct at least yearly pen test or when you have new release. Pentest is good if you have retesting only.