Does your business need a unique cybersecurity strategy, or can your established IT infrastructure and team handle modern threats? This is a question many organizations have to ask themselves as they grow and become more digital.
To figure this out, let’s take a look at the difference between IT and cybersecurity standards, what they accomplish for your company, and if you absolutely need a modern cybersecurity strategy.
Learn more about the difference between IT, information security, and cybersecurity in this on-demand webinar, The Difference Between IT and Cybersecurity Standards.
The Difference Between IT and Cybersecurity Standards and Strategies
Though not everything included in IT security overlaps with cybersecurity, much of it is very similar. Oftentimes, business owners find that if they have IT experts working on their system, they also have some form of cybersecurity in place. They truly go hand in hand and some of the expertise transfers. But not all.
Though the two tend to fall into the same category in most businesses, the main difference lies in the type of work done. While not all IT security is cybersecurity, all cybersecurity is IT security. Meaning that IT deals with some cyber situations, but a lot more falls under their umbrella than just protecting digital assets and business networks.
Related Blog: Is Information Security a Subset of Cybersecurity?
Cybersecurity requires its own array of knowledge and its own team to be performed effectively. It’s not that IT team members lack this expertise (though it can sometimes be the case), but it’s more that cybersecurity requires an amount of time and dedication that an IT team sometimes can’t afford.
The answer is a dedicated cybersecurity team. One whose sole purpose is to protect digital assets, defend the network, monitor for threats, and implement all of the layers of a modern cybersecurity strategy.
What Kinds of Businesses Need to Invest in an Advanced Cybersecurity Strategy?
For modern businesses both large and small, the deciding factor as to whether or not they should invest in cybersecurity often comes down to misunderstanding the gravity of the risks they submit themselves to by not having proper security.
83% of businesses see security as a significant threat, but only 43% of businesses consider it a priority to invest in.
Why is there such a disconnect between knowing that you need security but being reluctant to invest? Because most business owners still believe cyberattacks will never happen to them, their business is not important enough to be hacked, or they underestimate the damage that could be inflicted on them if an attack happens.
Every business should have cybersecurity elements implemented, but, for businesses that fall into these categories, an advanced cybersecurity strategy is absolutely necessary:
- Businesses in Industries That Require Adherence to Compliance Standards: If you work in healthcare, operate in regions with privacy laws (ex. California and New York), collect customer data, or work with the Department of Defense (DoD), you most likely must meet compliance standards (HIPPA, CMMC, CCPA, etc.). This means having the right cybersecurity protocols and technology required by those regulations. Businesses that must do this need compliance experts at their side and advanced cybersecurity plans in place to cover all their bases and avoid the risks of non-compliance, including fines, reputational harm, and closure of business.
- Businesses That Handle Sensitive Information: Even if security isn’t mandated by a government regulation, businesses that handle sensitive data need proper cybersecurity standards in place. Whether it’s financial, personal, geographic, or something else, people who trust you with their information expect you to protect it from bad actors. Failure to protect this information through the implementation of a strong cybersecurity strategy can result in loss of trust, loss of business, huge financial hits (via ransomware, most often), and more that can be extremely detrimental.
- Businesses that Rely on Reputation: If your business relies heavily on maintaining a steady trust with consumers, the best way to do this is to avoid the bad PR and reputational harm that comes from a cyberattack. 59% of consumers said a data breach would impact the likelihood of buying from a company again. In the digital age, trust is everything. 57% said they’d pay more to purchase from brands they deem trustworthy so it makes sense to ensure you can protect that trust.
- Highly Digitized Businesses: Companies that store a lot of information in the cloud utilize highly digitized processes, or which do business online need to protect these assets.
- Businesses That Want to Mitigate the Risks of an Attack: Cyberattacks are expensive. They’ll be responsible for $10.5 trillion in damages across the world with an average cost of $9.44 million in the US. Not to mention reputational harm, downtime, fines from non-compliance, and other costs that an attack can have. Organizations that want to mitigate these risks need advanced cybersecurity strategies in place to monitor for new threats, filter dangers from entering a network, and be prepared if an attack does happen to ensure damage is limited.
How to Build a Cybersecurity Strategy
Once you’ve decided that a cybersecurity strategy is necessary for your business, another difficult step awaits you: building a culture of cybersecurity in your business and implementing a strategy.
You need the right people, technology, processes, and protocols in place to stay secure. This is commonly referred to as a “layered cybersecurity approach” because the strongest possible strategy involves many different aspects of security.
