“An ounce of prevention….” Why Network Security Should Matter to Small to Mid-Sized Businesses

Before assuming my role as managing partner at eTag Technologies, I worked for many years as a Senior technology consultant from small to large enterprise businesses. One commonality I observed while working alongside organizational leaders is that many of them lacked a team or individual whose primary focus was to analyze and detect network breaches. 

It is easy to understand why these companies would have a challenge investing in a position such as this, but when confidential client information or their intellectual property is stolen, no amount of money will be able to repair the damage your business has caused to your client and its reputation. The senior members who were selected to serve as part of the information technology governing body are sadly demoted or asked to resign. This affects everyone and it is only a matter of time before you and your organization realize how vulnerable you may be.

Business related cyber-crimes are on the rise and every organization should strongly consider investing in securing their infrastructure and building a team to protect it. If no one in your organization is responsible for network intelligence forensics, there’s a good chance you’ll suffer a breach in the near future (assuming you haven’t already).

Some of you may ask, can we truly prevent intrusions? The short answer: No. If someone wants to get in, they will. Most break-ins are not through a direct assault on your firewall. Most breaches occur easily. For one example all someone in your organization needs to do is accidentally open a “phishing” e-mail. Once the unsuspecting user clicks on the link in the email, undetectable malware launches that compromises the computer and steals the username and password without even the user knowing it. The intruder will now dig and search for valuable information. If the computer is connected to a domain, most likely the intruder will try to use those same credentials to compromise files, data, and servers.

You are probably asking yourself: “Why am I spending all this money on hardware and software if the intruder can still gain access?” Don’t forget that by having preventive assets in place, you make it harder for the intruder to comprise your systems. Instead of seconds, it may take the intruder days, weeks or even months to gain access to internal resources. So, where does a network security analyst comes into play?  Consider them the last line of defense. Prevention eventually fails. Breaches are inevitable. You need someone to constantly Plan-Resist-Detect-Respond.

Timing is the key factor for your security team, as intruders rarely execute their entire mission within minutes. There usually is a window of opportunity from the initial unauthorized access to detect, respond to, and contain intruders before they can finish the job. They might gain access, but you can eliminate them before they get the data they want. Intruders can and will compromise your systems but, your business can win if you have the network security assets in place that can detect and respond to intrusions.

Now more than ever businesses need to plan on protecting their confidential client information and intellectual property. Hackers have declared an all-out war on every machine connected to the web; don’t make it easy for them. Software and hardware prevention mechanisms can help, but a network security analyst can frustrate, resist and even fend-off intruders before they wreak havoc on your business and your client.

I would like to thank Kevin Mandia, CEO of Mandiant, for inspiring and helping me understand the value of network security in all types of business.

Remember: THINK…DESIGN…BUILD

By: Alex Martinez, Entrepreneur\Chief Transformation Officer at eTag Technologies