Why Is Security Still A Top Concern
Make no mistake, good security is always going to be necessary. It's always going to be a top priority. Why is it that it's being called into question now? With the advancement of technology and social media outlets, security seems to be in a very vulnerable place right now.
With each no comment that is made on social media outlets, a public outcry erupts. You have people saying things like, "We are under attack here." People say this at the drop of a hat, anymore. They even say it about small comments, comments which don't mean anything at all. What can we do to help the situation out?
Risk Prevention, Not Elimination
Things aren't what they used to be, compared to 30 years ago. All media/social outlets tend to be somewhat more dangerous. We can't spend our lives living in a vacuum.
We used to focus all our energies on eliminating the risk. Things have changed. You can't just eliminate the risk. Once you eliminate a risk, a new one pops up.
What we need to do is focus on simple prevention. You won't be able to prevent the attacks, so we need to work around them.
The IT Perspective
Every firm works with a balancing act. This balancing act involves two things. One, the firm is trying to keep the hackers of their stuff. Two, companies are trying to keep up with their protections. This balancing act takes a lot of time, man-power and money.
Companies are spending what little money they have to keep up with this balancing act. Almost every day there is some kind of new attack made on a system. Many of these companies can't even afford to spend the money they are spending on this.
Hackers are getting smarter by the day. Most hackers learn through experience. There are some who think a high-powered technological approach is the best way to go. Don't kid yourself. This won't work.
The really good hackers can get into any system out there, no matter how technologically advanced it is. What are some of tasks that IT is being asked to help with.
The Role Of IT
Each firm only has a limited amount of money they can use on security. IT is being brought into figure out the best options. This is not always any easy task to accomplish. Some firms might not have the resources to cover the security packages they need.
This presents a problem for the IT people. They have to figure a way to get the package and still come in under budget. This is not an easy task to accomplish. This cause a lot of companies great frustration.
The user-demands is the next task. The IT people need to find common ground. What type of security is needed? Is it enough to get the job done? Will it be compatible with the systems already in place?
Can the company cover an expenditure like an upgrade? The IT people need to find options for each situation, especially when having the upgraded tools are necessary.
Just how user-friendly will the security be? Is it going to be difficult to figure out? Will just anybody be able to access it? How can the firm alleviate this problem?
These are all questions that must get answered. Becoming a target is also something which needs to be looked at, especially if it's happened before. If a firm spends the money to upgrade, will they become a target again?
Becoming A Target
There are two myths which come into play here. The first one involves the cloud. The myth is, cloud users are the only ones made vulnerable to the attacks. This is not true. Not matter what security system you use, you are always going to be vulnerable.
The second myth involves the size of the company. Some say that only the large ones get this threat. This is not true either. Smaller companies tend to get attacked more readily then larger ones.
The reason for this is the lack of sophistication. There is bigger window of opportunity for the hacker to get in and out. Think of it in the context of a regular burglar. Would you spend your time robbing a house which has a more sophisticated outline of security?
With these types of houses it would take only seconds for the cops to arrive. The ones with lack of security end up being a burglar's dream. Easy access with little or no detection at all… this how the hackers look at it.
CONCLUSION
This situation is not bleak. The best thing is to approach it from a risk management point of view. You can't prevent it from happening, but you can reduce the risk of it happening to you.
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