Data breaches are one of the biggest threats facing modern businesses, and the scale of the damage they can cause is increasing all the time. According to IBM, the average cost of a data breach in 2023 was $4.45 million, 15% more than it was in 2020. But the impact can be much more than financial: a breach can also have serious ramifications across legal penalties, operational disruption, and negative brand perception.
One of the main reasons data breaches are successful is because cybercriminals exploit vulnerabilities that businesses simply don’t know exist within their applications and infrastructure. This blog takes a look at what you can do to spot potential weaknesses, and plug any gaps in your security.
How are data breaches increasing
In 2023 alone, the number of data breaches recorded in the United States spiked by 78% from the previous year. According to the Identity Theft Resource Center, there were 3205 of them into total - that’s nearly nine for every day of the year.
One example of a major breach that hit the headlines recently was at the business intelligence and data analytics company Sisense. In April 2024, its customers were directed to reset their tokens and account credentials after a password compromise that put millions of existing credentials at risk. There were also fears that the password compromise could also result in attacks further down the supply chain of some of Sisense’s high-profile customers.
On the whole, organizations are aware of the need to boost investment into cybersecurity. Gartner has found that $188 billion was spent globally on cybersecurity in 2023, and this is expected to reach $215 billion for 2024. But good security is more than just defending when threats happen - it’s also proactively mitigating the risk of threats before they can take effect.
10 ways to identify risk of cyber security breaches
A strong security posture should be built from a range of solutions and processes, all of which come together to close off all avenues of opportunities for cybercriminals. From our experience with securing sensitive business data, these are the ten identification measures we recommend:
1. Conduct regular security assessments
Regularly reviewing cybersecurity policies can prevent any unauthorized access opportunities creeping in undetected, and identify any gaps in the security framework that need to be filled in. This can include penetration testing that gauges the effectiveness of existing security measures, and pinpointing areas of focus for improvement.
2. Assess data quality and integrity
When data quality is poor, then there may well be security issues or vulnerabilities that can lead to data breaches in the future. This can even happen when there are inconsistencies in data from one system or application to another. The accuracy, consistency and completeness of data should therefore be evaluated regularly, as part of wider data quality best practice.
3. Utilize data-driven analytics
Analyzing data can make a real difference to business decision-making – and it’s just as important from a cyber security perspective, too. Not only can data-driven analytics help identify areas of risk, solutions like multi-tenanted security can also work to protect and isolate the data of individual users. This is especially useful in SaaS and other industries where data security and efficient information management are crucial.
4. Perform vulnerability scans
A vulnerability scan can identify potential security weaknesses, not only within systems themselves, but also in the software applications running on them. This can be instrumental in protecting an organization from breaches and from sensitive data being exposed, and should therefore be conducted on a regular basis.
5. Review user access frequently
There is an important balance to be struck between allowing business users access for productive work, and ensuring risk isn’t introduced through more access being provisioned than is necessary. Regular reviews of access controls makes sure that the right people have the right access to the right information - and no more than that.
6. Use intrusion detection systems
When an intrusion does occur, it’s critical to know about it as quickly as possible, and to understand the problem in the greatest possible detail. This is where log-based intrusion detection is so useful, analyzing and auditing network logs to pick up on abnormal activity or security incidents at the earliest opportunity.
7. Implement data loss prevention tools
Once a Data Loss Prevention (DLP) policy is in place, then DLP solutions can be implemented to enforce that policy. Antivirus software, artificial intelligence and machine learning can all come together to label, share and safeguard data; to detect anomalous or suspicious activity; and ensure that data cannot be exposed to unauthorized users.
8. Conduct regular phishing simulations
Many phishing attacks are so successful because employees don’t have the awareness and training to spot fraudulent links and communications. Running phishing simulations can help them understand the telltale signs of these threats, and follow the right computer security practices to avoid falling foul of them in the future.
9. Conduct employee awareness surveys
Connected to the previous point, there should be a strong culture of cybersecurity awareness and vigilance within every organization. Employees should not rely on the cyber security team to keep them safe: they should themselves feel empowered to identify and report potential security issues proactively, and adhere to best practices around password safety.
10. Perform periodic data audits
Inconsistencies in data management can often be exploited by cybercriminals and result in a data leak or other breaches. Auditing data on a regular cycle can mitigate this risk by identifying areas where improvements can be made. This is also useful in demonstrating compliance with key regulations around data protection and privacy.
Reduce your data risk
All of the identification measures listed here are key to what we do at Panintelligence. Our business intelligence and data analytics platform is built with data security at its core, so that you can drive vital business insights without the risk of compromising sensitive and valuable information. Find out more on our robust security features here, then get in touch to request a free demo of our platform.
