Enterprise Cybersecurity: What it is & Why it’s Important

Having effective enterprise cybersecurity is more than having your employees create a password that isn’t their pet’s name—unless perhaps their cat’s name is at least 12 characters long, and a combination of upper- and lower-case letters and symbols. Whether it’s well-researched spearphishing attempts or bypassing MFA, threat actors have only become more daring. With the growing volume and velocity of data breaches happening across industries all over the world, and a record high 71% of organizations being victimized by ransomware in 2022, having a reliable and robust cybersecurity strategy in place can not only protect your organization’s finances, but its reputation as well.

What is enterprise cybersecurity?

Enterprise cybersecurity involves protecting the data, information, and digital assets of a company or organization. You may see the word “enterprise” and think that it only covers large businesses, but companies of all sizes should have a strong enterprise cybersecurity program in place. This program’s purpose is to not only fend off hackers, but also make sure breaches (both accidental and intentional) don’t happen from inside the company as well. Following best practices for enterprise cybersecurity can also help to ensure the responsible usage of employee and customer data when it comes to privacy laws.

Why is enterprise cybersecurity important?

Having a solid enterprise cybersecurity program in place can help prevent data leaks, protect sensitive customer data, and prevent financial damage. If you’ve heard the expression “no news is good news,” that’s especially true in the world of cybersecurity. Companies rarely make headlines for their stellar cyber hygiene; it’s only when a major incident occurs do they get noticed. Making strategic investments into their security infrastructures can help keep them successful but below the radar—the best place to be.

In fact, Gartner predicts that organizations will spend a collective $188.3 billion on information security and risk management products and services in 2023. Additionally, Gartner has identified three key factors that are fueling this growth: an increase in remote and hybrid work; a transition from Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to zero trust network access; and a shift to cloud-based delivery models.

What are the top enterprise cybersecurity threats?

The way we do pretty much everything has evolved dramatically over the last few years. And bad actors have evolved as well, which has only increased cyber risk. An organization’s security extends far beyond the walls of an office building—into homes, co-working spaces, and yes, even bathrooms. Whether it’s remote or hybrid work, supply chain attacks, cloud security, ransomware attacks, phishing, or even a cybersecurity skills gap, there are many threats to enterprise cybersecurity. And organizations need to stay one step ahead to minimize their risks and vulnerabilities.

What are the best practices for enterprise cybersecurity?

Enterprise cybersecurity is essential for protecting businesses from cyber threats and ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of sensitive data. With the increasing reliance on technology and the constantly evolving landscape of cyber threats, it’s important for organizations to stay up to date on best practices for securing their networks and data.

Here are a few best practices for enterprise cybersecurity:

1. Define assets and environment

Make sure to have a solid understanding of your organization’s assets, such as servers, workstations, and cloud services. Create an inventory of these assets to ensure good cyber hygiene and the ability to act quickly in the event of an incident.

2. Implement early detection systems

This is a critical tool when responding to a breach because it helps to alert administrators quickly, while also preventing further losses.

3. Utilize an end-to-end data protection software

An end-to-end data protection software helps provide comprehensive security for all of an organization’s data, from the moment it is created to the moment it is accessed or deleted. This practice also ensures that data is correctly handled and transferred throughout its journey.

4. Implement a Zero-Trust framework

By implementing a Zero-Trust framework, you can secure an organization by continuously validating and authenticating all users inside or outside the network.

5. Ensure data encryption

Data encryption is the process of encoding information, which can then only be accessed or decrypted by authorized users. Implementing data encryption is especially important for organizations that handle sensitive information, such as financial data, personal information, and intellectual property. By ensuring that all data is encrypted, businesses can reduce the risk of a data breach and protect against the potential consequences of such an event, including financial losses, reputational damage, and legal liabilities.

6. Configuration management

Configuration management helps organizations maintain control over their IT systems and ensure that they are configured correctly and consistently, by keeping track of changes made to system configurations, as well as monitoring and enforcing compliance with security policies and standards. It is also important to identify misconfigurations in a system’s default settings to increase security and reduce risk.

7. Understand the cyberhealth of target organizations

Every device used by an organization is a potential entry point for a hacker. Assess not only your organization’s cyber health, but the cyber health of the organizations and vendors you work with.

8. Continuously monitor vendor security

With the increasing reliance on technology and the growing use of third-party vendors, it’s important for businesses to understand the security practices of their vendors and ensure that they align with their own standards. By continuously monitoring vendor security, businesses can identify any potential vulnerabilities or risks and take steps to address them. This can include conducting regular security assessments, reviewing vendor contracts and policies, and requiring vendors to meet certain security standards.

9. Report to executives and boards

Keep senior members of your organization apprised of the cybersecurity landscape, communicate key metrics, and ensure that investments are being made into critical infrastructure. Effective reporting on cybersecurity to executives should include information on the current state of the organization’s cybersecurity posture, any identified risks or vulnerabilities, and the steps being taken to address these issues. Providing regular updates and reports on cybersecurity to board members can help organizations stay ahead of potential threats and take proactive measures to protect their data. It can also help build trust with stakeholders and demonstrate the organization’s commitment to cybersecurity.

10. Verify regulatory compliance

Establish controls that protect the confidentiality and integrity of information, including how that information is stored and transferred. By maintaining and verifying regulatory compliance, businesses can protect themselves from legal liabilities and fines, as well as stay up to date on the latest regulatory requirements.

11. Integrate and automate workflows

Reduce complexity with automated report generation, certificate expiration notices, storage and access of company information, and more. Automating workflows can also help organizations reduce the risk of a data breach by enabling real-time monitoring and response to potential threats.

12. Administrative review

During an administrative review, an organization may assess its current security posture, identify any weaknesses or vulnerabilities, and take steps to address these issues. This can include updating policies and procedures, implementing new technologies or processes, and conducting training and awareness programs for employees. Administrative reviews help you gain an in-depth and independent assessment of your organization’s cybersecurity health, as well as its practices and vulnerabilities.

13. Educate your employees

Regular training in cybersecurity best practices for employees goes a long way in reducing breaches. Ensure they have the resources to detect phishing attempts, contact IT, and report when a possible incident occurs.

14. Install a risk mitigation strategy

A risk mitigation strategy typically involves identifying the potential risks to an organization’s data, evaluating the likelihood and impact of these risks, and implementing measures to mitigate them. Whether it’s prevention, detection, or remediation, have a risk mitigation strategy and plan in place to stay proactive for any cybersecurity event.

In order to truly understand your organization’s cybersecurity posture, you need to obtain an accurate picture of your IT environment. Once you identify your organization’s biggest threats, you can prioritize the actions needed to protect its assets.

Establish strong enterprise cybersecurity with SecurityScorecard

The beginning of your journey to an optimized security posture starts with understanding your security rating, so you can see the risk factors that need your attention. With your scorecard in hand, you can review the assets that make up your digital portfolio and identify potential issues, such as unmanaged endpoints, apps, web domains, and more.

SecurityScorecard’s enterprise cyber risk management integrates with the security tools you already have, which makes it easy to turn insights into actionable workflows. This allows you to maximize the impact of your security resources and scale your operations. You’ll be able to communicate with executives and boards, and update them on internal initiatives and third-party risk to make sure they’re aware that good enterprise cyber health is not only a security strategy, but a business strategy as well. Get your score now.