The role of the organization in building resilience to cyber threats
Grzegorz Swiecicki
Chief Information Security Officer @ RIT Company | IT Security Auditing
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Let's talk about the "Email security"?
Developing the proper behavior - in addition to appropriate cybersecurity tools - is crucial for the security of company data, including sensitive ones. The best solutions in the digital protection field must be improved due to users' lack of awareness. An area requiring special attention is email. How to handle it, so it does not become a gateway for hackers?
Currently, every area of life is undergoing digital transformation. New ideas and solutions are constantly emerging, and the technological lexicon is continuously expanding, describing cyberspace.?
Standards of behavior, awareness of threats, and the importance of the human factor are not only the basics of knowledge necessary for all users to safely use the network.
Technology has created cyberspace while shaping the field and started to protect it. The biggest challenge of the modern world is the proper placement of man in digitized reality. The pandemic has made almost every aspect of life go online; social media and mobile devices have become an attribute of everyday life and guarantee an instant flow of information. Speed and precision are the undeniable advantages of digital data transmission. Still, you should be aware that in the era of free access to the Internet, distinguishing reliable news from fake news requires knowledge and appropriate experience. It is also essential to understand that information is a precious commodity in the era of widespread digitization, and its loss can lead to irreversible consequences.
Email security
In the business world, email remains the most common communication tool. Unfortunately, it is also a frequent target of hackers. The primary tool in the hands of cybercriminals is social engineering. Using chaos, fear, intensification, and the art of persuasion, hackers persuade their victims to, for example, provide login details that secure a company account or company-critical data. To authenticate their demands, they often assume a false identity, impersonating employees of banks, computer services, public institutions, or people from close to us whom we trust.
In the case of this type of attack, the essential link in the system is the man, his knowledge, vigilance, and awareness of the potential threat. The best and most modern security without an appropriate security culture may prove insufficient in the face of the human factor. That is why protecting the organization's resources is essential to develop a coherent catalog of behaviors, reactions, and rules that enable functioning in cyberspace while avoiding potential threats. It is also the only way to guarantee a prompt response during a security incident.
What is phishing?
One of the basic rules that must be implemented in the company is the principle of limited trust. Cybercriminals know very well that by creating messages that look real, they can easily export data. When receiving emails whose authors demand a specific action, it is necessary to check the reliability of the sender's address. It is also worth asking yourself why the bank asks you to log in via a link this time since there has been no such need so far. It is a task that requires focus, but its failure can have fatal consequences for the entire organization.
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The most dangerous content is targeted at a specific addressee, i.e., spear phishing. Criminals impersonate, for example, business partners, and the message is personalized. A thorough recognition of social media profiles and company or office data often precedes this attack. The first thing that should draw the recipient's attention to a suspicious message is the incorrect language form: grammar and punctuation errors and the lack of Polish characters. It is worth assessing whether the email has been provided with appropriate logotypes and a footer containing the sender's data. It should also be remembered that state administration bodies and banks never ask for payment via the sent link. It would help if you also were very careful with abbreviated website addresses. Appearing in the mail. By hovering your mouse pointer over a link, you can check where the traffic is redirected to - the destination address will be displayed at the bottom of the browser.
All messages about rewards, attacks, and crimes should also be alarming. These types of messages are designed to evoke strong emotions, under the influence of which the actions desired by cybercriminals will be performed. Email and text messages should be left unanswered and marked as SPAM or suspicious. It will delete them and inform your mail provider that the statement has been deemed potentially dangerous.
The role and importance of Security Awareness
Man and his driving force significantly impact the space in which they function. It also applies to the digital one. Everyone who works in the network should be aware of the environment surrounding them and its associated risks.
Security Awareness - because that's what we're talking about - is building cybersecurity awareness and culture in an organization. The critical aspect of educating employees to resist cyber threats is emphasizing their unique role in the entire security system. Then, the employees should be provided with the appropriate tools and familiarized with the methods and practices of proper functioning in the digitized space.
The most important conclusions
Ubiquitous digitization has changed the model of life and work. The best network protection systems may be useless due to a lack of appropriate knowledge and proper habits. That is why employee education is essential to the organization's digital security.