Tait CIO John Emerson discusses why security of information is such a concern, and where to start to make a difference.
What can a security breach mean for your organization?
- Loss of reputation, customer or community trust
- Intellectual property theft
- Loss of investor confidence market share and revenue
- Legal action
Security is as much of a concern for shareholders as regulators. Ultimately though, it doesn’t matter how a hacker gets in. Once they are inside, the damage could be substantial. One large Australian company lost 20% of its market value within three days of a security breach being disclosed. However, there are some key areas to focus on, to reduce the likelihood of this occurring.
1. MOBILE DEVICES:
Include work and personal devices, particularly if they operate on public networks, including TCP/IP.
2. PEOPLE:
Background check staff and ensure they participate in the development (or upgrade) of your security policy.
3. LMR NETWORK:
Include base stations, devices and software.
4. OTHER NETWORKS:
Local area, wide area and the cloud; If these appear secure, pay an accredited organization to try and break in to test it.
5. VENDOR SUPPLY CHAIN (PRODUCTS AND SERVICES):
Ensure they have ISO 27001 certification.
6. BRING YOUR OWN DEVICES (BYOD):
Policy AND processes should be in place to protect and secure private data and applications.
7. SOCIAL MEDIA:
This creates new opportunities for hackers even on a work device at home. Ensure this is covered in the security policy.
8. PHYSICAL SECURITY:
Often overlooked, ensure processes around access logs, swipe cards etc are stringent.
9. SOFTWARE APPLICATIONS:
When considering new applications for purchase, ensure they are secure.
We welcome your views, comments and suggestions in the Tait Connection Magazine LinkedIn group.
This article is taken from Connection Magazine, Edition 4. Connection is a collection of educational and thought-leading articles focusing on critical communications, wireless and radio technology.
