Few departments are as vital as IT to ensuring an organization’s operational continuity and unobstructed growth. To that end, being on top of cybersecurity threats is among IT’s essential commitments. Whether the department succeeds or fails at this comes down to following best practices while avoiding common yet disastrous mistakes.
In this article, we look at six core responsibilities of every IT department and highlight the dos and don’ts necessary to handle each smoothly.
Updates and Patching
Maintaining a regular and automated patching schedule for all systems is the fundamental prerequisite for secure IT operations. Software and firmware updates address known vulnerabilities, robbing adversaries of an easy way to gain unauthorized access.
Auditing the devices and software you use should also be standard practice. A change in ownership or developer neglect can cause previously trustworthy software to become unreliable. Replacing it with new reputable alternatives should be a top priority.
Access Controls
Weak passwords and overprivilege are two common pitfalls that undermine a disorganized IT department’s access security. The former puts each account whose credentials are easy to brute force or shared with accounts beyond your control at risk. The latter gives users more access than necessary, expanding the attack surface in case of breaches and increasing the potential severity of insider threats.
Strong access controls are possible through a combination of cybersecurity tools and best practices. On the one hand, password managers create unique credentials and may strengthen them with MFA. On the other hand, frameworks like RBAC and the principle of least privilege reduce the chances of misuse or unauthorized entries by limiting the scope of access to only the computing resources specific users actually need.
Network Security
Neglect is the most damaging aspect of network security, especially since so many factors and systems are at play. An IT department might not segment the network, allowing for lateral movement that can turn a minor breach into a critical security incident. Not paying attention to endpoint security is another failure that can easily be remedied by deploying anti-malware and EDR solutions.
The rise of remote work means employees no longer access company resources solely through tightly controlled on-premise networks. This introduces the need for encrypted communication and additional access controls, which is one of the biggest benefits of a VPN.
The right VPN has to meet high standards. It should offer impeccable uptimes and customer support to ensure continued operations and swiftly deal with potential issues. The VPN needs to easily scale with an organization’s evolving needs while allowing admins granular user control and provisioning. Most importantly, a suitable VPN should use the most sophisticated encryption standards and adhere to a strict no-logs policy.
Wondering how to choose the most suitable option for your IT team? Define what you need from a VPN for your business. Then, you can check Reddit’s best VPN comparisons. In addition, watch reviews and business recommendations online. Trustpilot and other customer sentiment sites would allow you to evaluate your options.
Backup Strategy
Few IT departments would be so shortsighted as to neglect backups completely. Even so, a backup may become outdated or corrupted and won’t be able to quickly restore system functionality in case of natural disasters or ransomware attacks.
Backups need to be created and tested regularly. IT teams working at smaller organizations may make do with the 3-2-1 strategy, making sure at least one copy is stored off-site. Larger enterprises may need to invest in more advanced solutions like automated failover systems.
Employee Training
Contrary to popular belief, the IT department isn’t solely responsible for an organization’s cybersecurity. After all, most data breaches happen due to credentials being compromised due to human error, whether through improper storage or falling for social engineering attacks.
Cybersecurity awareness needs to be a pillar of company culture, reinforced through regular training. Merely instilling the importance of strong credentials and the knowledge necessary to recognize common cyberattacks can dramatically boost the organization’s resilience.
Incident Response
No combination of cybersecurity measures is foolproof, and arrogantly assuming so can leave you unprepared to effectively tackle and recover from attacks. Not having an incident response plan is irresponsible, but not testing and adapting an existing one to emerging threats isn’t much better.
A comprehensive incident response plan needs to cover all plausible eventualities. Moreover, it needs to outline everyone’s responsibilities and ways in which the incident will be communicated to other departments and stakeholders. Most importantly, the plan needs to remain in the team’s consciousness, which only works if it’s regularly revised and tested.