Information technology (IT) security is a term that you hear in virtually every industry all over the globe – especially in our current technological climate. IT security is an approach to systems development that seeks to make systems free from vulnerabilities and resistant to attacks through measures such as continuous testing, authentication safeguards and adherence to best programming practices.
Read on to find out five of the most common challenges in the world of information security.
1. Lack of Information Security Awareness
There is a saying that “people are the weakest link”, and this is generally true when human intervention is a part of any process. This could be attributed to various causes - i.e. training, fatigue, culture, overconfidence (or lack of) and even carelessness. Whatever the case may be, it all comes down to teaching people and making them aware of the risk involved for them to develop an appreciation for information security.
2. Keeping Up with Legal and Regulatory Compliance
It is crucial to update policies, processes and even technology (tools) to meet compliance requirements and, more importantly, to be able to respond accordingly to information breaches and satisfy breach notification requirements.
3. Managing Risk with Different Variables
The questions that always come to mind when we talk about risk management is “How likely is this to happen?” and “How this will impact the organisation?” These two questions can determine success or failure.
The reality is, no one is truly immune from risks, nor can anyone eliminate them. All one can do is contain and manage the risk, minimising the effect if anything transpires.
4. Rising Cost of Security
Every year, the cost of security goes up as new threats emerge with higher sophistication than the previous ones. Organisations periodically need to revisit their security architecture and assess if what they have in place is still able to protect them from current and emerging threats; otherwise, a change needs to be made.
5. Creating Real Business Value
If information security is to add value to the business, it needs to be strategically applied to meet company objectives. It is not all about having the latest and greatest in technology, but rather for information security to be able to manage and address risks. It is about placing the business in a favourable and predictive business environment, enabling it to be a partner of choice to work with.
If you want to learn more information about these challenges, please download the full e-guide on the right.
