Data breaches have become some of the more dangerous and frequent threats to corporate continuity in the past few years, as many organizations have struggled to either avoid or recovery from major instances of information loss and exposure. In many cases, the biggest problem is a complete lack of focus and motivation among leaders to modernize their IT security frameworks and deter the more common causes of security incidents.
What's more, hackers and cybercriminals seem to become more sophisticated and broad-reaching with the passing of each year, putting virtually every industry at risk of these attacks. While all sectors have to take steps to ensure the integrity of their systems, data and general security integrity, the health care and financial services industries are under specifically stringent regulations with respect to privacy protection and fraud prevention.
As such, organizations in these industries must become a bit more proactive and comprehensive in their planning and management of IT security, incorporating everything from email encryption solutions to general database protection before a threat ever strikes. When looking for a good example of an industry that is scrambling to boost data security while also swiftly deploying new digitally driven strategies, retail is a good place to start.
The retail dilemma
Retailers are under similar compliance requirements to companies in the financial services sector, notably the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards, which cover all entities that manage bank information. Retailers have also been some of the worst performers in the protection of their own information and consumer data, as evidenced by the Target breach and countless others that have struck in the past year.
CIO Magazine recently affirmed that wholly online retailers might be going about security investments and deployments in the wrong way altogether, and this has actually emerged as a trending conversation among experts and analysts. Studies indicate that retailers, much like other businesses, have increased their spending in IT security and actually pushed the majority of their technology expenditures toward protection.
However, more breaches continue to strike the American private sector, indicating that these investments are simply not getting the job done. According to the news provider, whereas traditional controls are taking up much of the new budget allocations, experts from the Ponemon Institute conducted a study that revealed how costly SQL injection attacks have become.
As a note, SQL injections are essentially characterized by the attack of data storage applications through malicious code, while this is believed to have been the cause of the Target breach. The source explained that the researchers believe retailers must increase their abilities to monitor networks and systems at all times to avoid these types of attacks, or at least contain them once they strike.
With that said, perhaps the biggest problem is a one-dimensional approach to security on behalf of companies in this industry. Rather than putting all the chips on one color, the most effective strategy is often to spread around the spending and make sure all vulnerabilities are covered.
When the breach strikes
First, it is important to remember that the best defense in the IT security arena is a strong offense, and that companies will face much more complex issues when a breach occurs compared to the challenges of avoiding the incidents entirely. However, it is impossible to be completely outside of the risk pool, and having contingencies in place to swiftly respond to an incident is a key components of the overall plan.
Businesses should always follow compliance requirements and keep up with the evolving notification standards that are in place to minimize damages in the event of a breach.
David Bailey is Senior Vice President at Protected Trust. Protected Trust is a sponsor of the Print4Pay Hotel. I urge members and readers to visit their site to see their full line of products and services. More and more we need to provide well rounded strategic solutions for our customers. Protected Trust offers some unique solutions that can help us in our day to day efforts. Check them out here.
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