Data security breaches are becoming increasingly frequent, more expensive to contain, and challenging to prevent:
- There were 1,291 breaches in 2021, compared with 1,108 in 2020, according to Fortune.
- The costs associated with incurring and remediating a data breach now average $4.24 million, the highest since the Ponemon Institute and IBM started studying data breaches 17 years ago.
- Cyberattackers are becoming more sophisticated, according to Cyber. One of the most devastating ransomware attacks — on JBS, a meat processing company — was carried out by a highly specialized criminal gang.
We have helped numerous organizations recover from security incidents over the years, so we want to share a little about what the security breach recovery process looks like. We hope that by drawing back the curtain, so to speak, it will help you better prepare for when a security incident strikes your business.
The steps to threat remediation
When a security incident has occurred, our first action is to Identify what has happened and where. We investigate the alerts and notifications from security systems, review security and system logs, flag unusual behaviors, and start documenting the incident.
Think of it like criminal forensic analysis. We’re detectives on the case, and we have to know the details before we can conduct any corrective processes.
Next, we move to Contain the incident. Our team uses a security incident and event management (SIEM) solution that allows us to quarantine suspicious activity. Even though we’re containing the potentially malicious code or file, it doesn’t mean we have completed our investigation.
As the word suggests, containment allows us to put a wall around malicious activity and examine it. Meanwhile, we’re also engaging with IT support teams to start preventative measures — such as changing passwords, locking down accounts — to make sure the incident doesn’t spread throughout corporate systems and infrastructure.
Finally, our team works to Eradicate the problem, and Recover systems or data that were affected by the security incident. This involves disabling the “host” of the malware — i.e., the server or application where the problem was identified — then cleaning up the affected code or files to bring systems back online.
Don’t get the wrong impression; even though we have only listed three steps in this process doesn’t mean the work is simple or done rapidly. Believe us when we say: It takes a village to remediate security breaches and get a company operational again.
The need to work on prevention
Speaking of that village, we have a deep bench of security, systems, and network specialists. In addition to threat remediation and recovery, our teams can deliver extensive services to prepare and protect our customers from cyber risks.
That starts by coordinating with clients to understand what internal personnel resources they already have. We can then augment those teams or if need be, bring in third parties using our family of technologists in the applications, security, and network worlds.
Our security teams also examine existing security protections and processes that are in place. For example, we want to know if you have created an incident response plan, and if your IT department has deployed antimalware, endpoint protection, firewalls, threat intelligence, etc.
We also look to see if prevention strategies have been implemented, such as identify access management systems, cloud security policies, and employee awareness training.
No matter where your organization exists on the cybersecurity preparedness spectrum, know that no two breaches or incidents are ever the same. We can help ensure you’re ready to address whatever cyber threat comes your way.
RKON’s IT Security Services protect businesses from cybersecurity threats. We blend proactive governance, risk, compliance and security disciplines to better prepare organizations and mitigate the results of security incidents. Get more info here.
