Why your business needs layered cybersecurity
When you think of your organisation’s IT security systems, what do you think of? A catch-all antivirus product that covers mail, browsing and sharing? A unified cybersecurity and data protection programme? Or maybe firewalls, endpoint detection and anti-malware safety nets?
The truth is, efficient cybersecurity doesn’t rely on these individual products. It relies on an approach that includes all of these products.
If that sounds overwhelming, think of it this way. Cybersecurity isn’t a single product or programme, but rather layers of defence and protection. If one layer fails and allows a threat in, the next layer catches it.
With cyberthreats constantly growing in sophistication and frequency, it can be difficult for businesses to know exactly which layers of protection they need. From our years of experience in securing South African enterprises, we’ve seen that businesses are at risk at four key touchpoints:
- Email
- Identity
- The business network
- People
These areas harbour risks, but they also present opportunities to add another layer of protection to that multilayered security structure every organisation needs.
Protecting your inbox
Because every staff member has access to an inbox, email remains one of the most vulnerable entry points for cyberattacks in any business. Historically, phishing and malware were among the biggest email threats, but today business email compromise (BEC) has been added as a growing risk.
BEC is a smart, online scam where criminals con employees into sending them money or sensitive data by posing as the company’s bosses, trusted suppliers or partners. These cyberattacks rely on social engineering as opposed to harmful viruses to gain access to funds and even entire bank accounts.
Staff are trained not to click on links, but BEC scams don’t necessarily use this easy-to-spot weak point. Instead they exploit employee trust, targeting staff at every level, including executives, with convincing requests.
BEC scams can cost businesses millions, losses from which smaller organisations may struggle to recover. When it comes to email protection, prevention is better than recovery. AI-powered email security helps your business defend against sophisticated email attacks while staying ahead of evolving threats.
Safeguarding your identity
In the same way that BEC scams rely on false identities and brand trust to extract money or data, so too do the multitude of threats that use domain, website and invoice spoofing.
These scams create websites, email domains and financial documents like invoices that look just like the authentic versions, but with fake bank account details. These are then used in phishing and other attacks, where users are tricked into revealing sensitive data, downloading malware or transferring money.
Here it’s not just money at stake but your organisation’s entire reputation, as clients, suppliers, providers and partners may be reluctant to deal with a company that has put them in the firing line of scammers.
The onus is on you as a business to secure your systems and help ensure your staff, as well as your client and supply network, are safe from such attacks. Robust email authentication protocols, proactively claiming web domains and sites before criminals do, and domain monitoring services all help to protect your company’s identity and reputation.
Securing your network
A company’s IT network should be the foundation upon which all other secure business operations run. But all too often corporate networks are a hodgepodge of firewalls, VPNs and cloud-based apps. Individually these products work, but when they don’t integrate effectively, they can leave gaps in coverage.
This results in network vulnerabilities – a risk that is heightened when you add visiting guests using the network and remote workers to the mix.
Typically, firewalls protect against hackers, malware, malicious traffic and unauthorised outbound traffic. Secure remote access protects connections when employees log onto the network from home or a public place, helping to secure business data and prevent unauthorised access.
Increasingly, businesses are combining next-generation firewalls with secure access technologies such as Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA). These layers can be strengthened further through network segmentation – dividing the network into smaller, isolated sections – which helps prevent cybercriminals from moving across the wider business network if one area is compromised.
Empowering your people
Just as a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, so too with cybersecurity and employees. Research has consistently shown that human error plays a significant role in data breaches and cybersecurity incidents. One mistake by one employee can put an entire network at risk if the right protections aren’t in place.
Social engineering, or using psychological manipulation to trick people into giving away sensitive information, is on the rise, while human error through clicking on phishing links, using weak passwords and misdelivering confidential files and data continues to undermine network security.
One of the most effective ways to reduce these risks is to build an informed workforce that is aware of the traps laid by cybercriminals. This includes creating a culture of cyber awareness within the business and training staff in spotting and responding to threats.
Multi-layer protection
It’s evident why robust cybersecurity should comprise multiple layers, but what about the products themselves? In a sea of brands and solutions, choosing the right products can become confusing. This is where Winstel Technologies guides clients towards securing the best coverage possible.
Cybersecurity has been a focus for Winstel Technologies since day one, and our available solutions have changed as cyberthreats have evolved and become more complex.
We have access to solutions from leading global security vendors to build the right layers of protection for your business. Our security solutions are strategy-based and take into account your industry, operational environment and specific security needs.
Because effective cybersecurity isn’t about relying on one product to protect everything. It’s about ensuring that your inbox, identity, network and people are protected by layers that work together – so that if one layer is breached, another is there to stop the threat.
