With 60% of small businesses forced to close after a cyber attack, and severe financial and reputational ramifications affecting larger businesses, the need for effective cyber security tools and protocols is increasingly apparent.
Should a data breach occur, you need a clear and robust strategy in place and ready to go. Not only can this mitigate the effects of the breach as quickly as possible, but such strategies also help you stay on the right side of the law by ensuring that all relevant compliance and regulations related to data and data breaches are followed.
At Netcentrix, we work alongside businesses to arm them with the tools and processes they need to stay safe. Find out more about our security solutions, or keep reading as we share a few tried and tested suggestions you can use to form your own data breach response plan.
The Steps Involved in Data Breach Response
Containment
Once a data breach is confirmed, it’s essential to find the source of the breach and close it as quickly as possible to prevent further breaches and a potential domino effect of consequences.
If the cause is not immediately clear—and you have an in-house IT or cybersecurity expert—a thorough analysis of your systems and network needs to be performed to identify the source of the problem.
It may also be necessary to use advanced cybersecurity tools to identify vulnerabilities in accounts and software that hackers may have targeted during their attack.
But what if you don’t have such resources or expertise in place? The consequences could be devastating.
Speak to the team at Netcentrix about improving your cyber security efforts, and arm yourself with the best defence against cyber attacks going forward.
Assessment
Once the source of the data breach has been identified and resolved, you must then assess precisely what data was affected, how it was affected, and when exactly the breach occurred.
For example, was only company data accessed, or was sensitive client information (such as names, addresses, and financial details) stolen? Or were only certain parts of the system breached?
This knowledge can be used to identify weaknesses and address them, as outlined in the first step.
In some cases, data can be accessed and downloaded by cyber criminals before being wiped entirely from systems. This can be avoided by having a stringent disaster recovery plan in place.
In particularly dramatic attacks, data can be stolen and held for ransom, with the thieves threatening to publish it online or sell it to the highest bidder unless they are paid.
Once the “What, Where, and When” have been answered, the rest of the steps in this process become much easier to follow.
Notify Affected Individuals
Once the breach has been assessed and contained, it’s time to inform the affected individuals, so they are aware and can take the appropriate action.
If any customers have had sensitive financial information lost or stolen as part of the breach, they may wish to take steps with their bank to protect themselves from theft or identity fraud. This can involve closing and replacing credit and debit cards or even closing accounts entirely.
It is also important to report the breach to relevant compliance authorities, such as those responsible for regulating GDPR, so they can begin their own investigation.
This is not only a legal requirement, but with the help of experts in the field, it can also assist in resolving the data breach more quickly.
Failure to report data breaches responsibly and promptly can result in fines, business closures, and, in extreme cases, criminal charges.
Data breach notification laws are clear on this, so it’s advisable to seek legal counsel in the wake of a breach—even if you believe you are following all the necessary procedures.
If you would like to speak to a specialist about how you could avoid the pitfalls of a data breach, reach out to Netcentrix today.
Investigation
After all relevant parties have been notified, it’s time to dig deeper into the precise cause of the data breach. Specifically, what weaknesses were exploited by the attackers?
Along with the relevant compliance organisations conducting their own investigations, many businesses will also hire a data breach response team to investigate the incident.
These experts can take a more forensic approach and uncover vulnerabilities that may not have been spotted by your in-house staff, before offering solutions to prevent a similar occurrence in the future.
The more care and attention taken during this phase, the better you can defend against future attacks – and the more favourably you’ll be viewed by clients and customers.
Remediation & Evaluation
After the investigation has concluded and the specifics surrounding the breach—and the damage caused—are clear, you must work diligently to restore systems to full functionality. However, not only should you aim to return to normal operations, but you must also ensure that your systems are more secure than they were before the breach.
Again, if this is not achievable exclusively with in-house staff, it is best handled by a cybersecurity expert. Such experts can also be tasked with explaining the ins and outs of the data breach to all staff members—including senior management and other relevant internal stakeholders—so everyone has a clear understanding of why it occurred.
It can also be beneficial for staff to undergo additional training. This can foster more security-conscious working practices, enabling all staff to play a role in preventing future breaches.
Can Cyber Security Tools and Protocols Help Prevent a Data Breach in the First Place?
By arming yourself with the latest cyber security tools and protocols, as well as working with trained and reliable cyber security experts like Netcentrix, you can give your business the best chance at preventing cyberattacks before they have the chance to cause damage, keeping sensitive company and customer data safe and intact.
Choose Netcentrix as Your Cyber Security Partner for Business
Concerned about the rise of data breaches and the impact a cyber security incident may have on your business? By partnering with Netcentrix, you’ll be taking the ultimate preventative step – protecting your business with the most up-to-date tools to keep your data safe.
With decades of combined experience helping businesses like yours utilise the best technologies for their needs, we’re ideally placed to help protect your business from new and emerging threats.
To find out more about cyber security solutions for businesses, get in touch now.
