Security breakdowns are common among MSPs, SMBs, and enterprise customers alike. Many businesses overlook critical aspects of their cybersecurity posture, leaving them vulnerable to costly data breaches.
Common issues include underutilized security features, misconfigured tools, and a lack of integration between systems designed to detect and respond to cyber threats. That said, addressing these gaps is not difficult. Below are five key vulnerabilities that frequently put businesses at risk — and how they can be addressed.
No. 1 Identity and Access Management
Identity and access management (IAM) is more than just passwords. Many businesses struggle with adoption and enforcement of weak password policies. They lack multifactor authentication (MFA), have overprivileged accounts, inconsistently enforce policies, misconfigure conditional access policies, and monitor insufficiently. These vulnerabilities can easily be exploited by attackers.
If your business does not control who or what devices can connect to company resources, a costly data breach is almost inevitable.
- Pro Tip: Ensure robust IAM practices by implementing strong password policies, enforcing MFA, regularly reviewing and adjusting account privileges, and configuring conditional access policies correctly. Consistent monitoring is crucial to detect and respond to unauthorized access attempts.
No. 2 Email and Messaging Security
Misconfigured spam filters, vulnerable email clients, and lack of data loss prevention (DLP) controls and certificates are common issues. Most data breaches originate from phishing or social engineering attacks, exploiting these vulnerabilities.
Most attacks do not bypass modern mail security controls; they succeed due to a lack of enabled controls, proper encryption, misconfiguration, or inconsistent security training.
- Pro Tip: Strengthen your email and messaging security by properly configuring spam filters, securing email clients, and implementing DLP controls and encryption standards. Regularly train employees and test these settings to ensure they remain effective.
No. 3 Endpoint Management & Protection
Ron Hruby
Endpoint management and endpoint protection must work in concert. Businesses often struggle with mobile device management, outdated antivirus definitions, missing security features, improper integration with conditional access, inadequate endpoint hardening, and insufficient ransomware protection. These gaps leave endpoints vulnerable to attacks.
Effective endpoint protection goes beyond just installing endpoint software. It involves comprehensive management of all devices, including corporate and BYOD (bring your own device).
- Pro Tip: Establish and enforce security baselines for each device before granting access to company resources. Regularly update antivirus definitions, enable all available security features, and ensure proper integration with conditional access policies. Additionally, harden endpoints by configuring them to resist attacks and implement robust ransomware protection measures.
No. 4 Ransomware Protection
Many businesses overestimate the effectiveness of endpoint detection and response (EDR) products and their ability to recover from ransomware attacks. This overconfidence, combined with inadequate testing and reliance on backups, is a dangerous gamble. Recovery from backups is often too late, especially with dual extortion threat actors.
- Pro Tip: Don’t mess around with ransomware. Invest in specialized tools that can stop ransomware at pre-execution and specialize in recovery. Ransomware protection often requires a dedicated product fully integrated into your cybersecurity program. Conduct thorough research or consult with peers to find the right solution. Look for products that use AI/ML models specifically trained on ransomware behavior.
No. 5 Logging
Logging is essential for forensic and compliance purposes. Security logging and security information and event management (SIEM) capabilities are critical in today’s complex threat landscape. Proper logging and cross-correlation of security events help organizations detect, investigate, and respond to incidents effectively across disparate security technologies and products.
- Pro Tip: Implement a robust solution to collect and analyze detailed logs. These logs are invaluable for security analysts and forensic specialists in investigating security incidents and identifying root causes. Regularly review and fine-tune your logging policies to ensure they capture all relevant data. Leveraging these insights can significantly enhance your organization’s security posture.
Final Thoughts
Clients should have both security and compliance goals; they are not the same. There have been secure businesses that have not met compliance, and compliant businesses have been breached. By addressing these five common gaps, any business in any industry — regardless of size — will reduce the risk of a costly data breach.
More is not always better when it comes to security products. For those seeking a comprehensive security solution, consider researching extended detection and response (XDR). XDR integrates data from various security tools — such as endpoints, identities, networks, and cloud services — into a single platform. This unified view enables organizations to detect, investigate, and respond to threats more effectively and quickly — and advanced XDR will include SIEM.
Ron Hruby is COO of Vertek. As the head of a 24×7 U.S.-based security operations center, he and his team provide real-time threat intelligence and expert response to clients across 14+ industries. He is also the founder of Cybermechanics, an initiative dedicated to raising awareness and funding cancer research for neuroendocrine tumors (NETs).
Featured image: iStock
