Network Security Work Mistakes.
How often do you hear about network security breaches? The sad reality is that these incidents happen way too frequently. In fact, according to Verizon, the average organization suffers from at least one data breach every year.
If you want to stay ahead of hackers, you need to take steps to prevent them from accessing sensitive information. Unfortunately, many organizations don’t follow basic security practices. This means they leave themselves open to attack.
Here are nine common network security mistakes that can put your company at risk. These include failing to properly secure devices, using outdated software, and ignoring employee training.
1. Inadequate Employee Awareness
According to ESG research, more than half of all successful breach attacks involved some form of phishing. In other words, the hackers tricked someone into giving them access to the network.
An important element of network security is employee awareness. You need to educate your staff about the dangers of phishing and other hacking techniques. If your employees know what to look for, they will be better able to spot malicious messages.
2. Unsecured Devices
Many organizations have too many devices connected to their networks. While it may seem like a good idea to have as many devices as possible, it actually makes your network more vulnerable to attack.
The reason is that each device represents a potential way for hackers to get access to your network. Rather than adding devices over time, you should start by identifying all the devices that are on your network now. After that, you can take steps to secure them and remove any unnecessary devices.
3. No Patch Management Program
Most organizations try to keep their software up-to-date with the latest patches and fixes. However, many don’t follow through with this plan and end up missing out on critical updates.
There are several reasons why organizations fail to keep their software up-to-date:
1 * They don’t have a program in place for managing patches 2* They fail to understand the importance of updates 3* They think updates are too difficult or time-consuming 4* They believe their software vendors take care of updates for them.
If you want to avoid these common mistakes, you need a patch management program that includes these five steps:
1* Identify all software on your network 2* Keep track of which patches have been applied 3* Ensure that all new computers receive current software 4* Find old computers that aren’t running current software 5* Manage automatic updates so they occur regularly
4. Failure To Use Two-Factor Authentication
This article discusses how two-factor authentication (2FA) works and provides examples of how it is used in various settings. For organizations, 2FA adds another layer of security by requiring two forms of identification when you log in: something you know and something you have.
The “something you know” could be a password or PIN, and the “something you have” is a mobile device that generates a one-time passcode. Two-factor authentication is especially important for network security because it protects against hackers stealing your login credentials.
5. Employees Don’t Practice Good OpSec
Almost two-thirds of all successful attacks against organizations involve some form of social engineering. In other words, the hackers trick someone into giving them access to the network.
6. Using Outdated Software
Outdated software has become a major problem for businesses because companies just don’t seem to realize how serious the issue can be. Many organizations are still running software that is several years old, which means they aren’t receiving critical security updates.
7. Using Shared Office 365 Accounts
Shared accounts make it far too easy for hackers to gain access to your network. If you use Office 365 and share an account with staff members, you could be opening yourself up to devastating attacks.
8. Ignoring Logs & Alerts
Most network security breach incidents are caused by mistakes made by employees who don’t take the time to read log files and alerts properly. If you want to reduce your chances of suffering from a data breach, your employees need to understand what log files are and why they are so important for network security. They also need to know how to interpret log files and alerts while acting on them in a timely manner.
9. Lacking An Incident Response Plan
Lack of an incident response plan can leave your company vulnerable to cyber attacks in the event that hackers gain access to its network or steal sensitive data. It’s imperative that your business has an incident response plan in place so everyone knows what to do if there is an attack of some kind.
Conclusion
Information security is an ongoing process, not a one-time project or implementation. The key is to have multiple layers of defense in your environment.