Did you know its National Cybersecurity Awareness Month? Held every October, this initiative raises awareness about the importance of cybersecurity and provides an opportunity to share resources and information regarding how best to keep data secure. This year’s overarching message, “Own IT. Secure IT. Protect IT.,” focuses on how Americans need to take action and follow the right steps to ensure private information is kept safe.
While a lot of this responsibility falls in the hands of the consumer, this concept can easily extend to the physical security industry and the way that manufacturers create products. Ignoring the warning signs and vulnerabilities is no longer an option considering how damaging a cyber breach can be (the average cost of a malware attack on a company is $2.4 million).
A key area where cybersecurity and physical security intersect — and where businesses can make a difference — is through cloud-based services. Because the safety of storing and managing data in the cloud is of utmost importance, it is critical that manufacturers and integrators incorporate the concept of “security by design.”
For end users to safely reap the various benefits of the cloud, they need to be assured that the solution was built from the ground up with protection in mind every step of the way. Every component, connection and data flow must create an optimal experience for the user that can give them peace of mind at all times.
This can be achieved by keeping the security of the solution at the forefront throughout the entire design process through measures such as:
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- Risk assessments. It’s critical to identify all functionality and sensitive data that will be used and stored by the product at the very beginning of its development.
- Security requirements. Though this should go without saying, manufacturers need to be sure to comprehensively outline each and every security element of a product — for both software and hardware pieces — before and during its creation.
- Vulnerability testing. During the design process, manufacturers need to keep security in mind by putting the product to the test at various stages. Penetration testing helps strengthen systems by attempting to circumvent the risk controls and security configuration of the product.
- Choosing the right cloud provider. A service that also realizes the importance of cybersecurity, such as Google Cloud Platform, can help eliminate mundane infrastructure management tasks, leaving manufacturers to concentrate on bolstering the platform’s security capabilities.
- Risk assessments. It’s critical to identify all functionality and sensitive data that will be used and stored by the product at the very beginning of its development.
While these steps are crucial to establishing a “security by design” approach, we must keep in mind the fact that cybersecurity efforts don’t stop after a product or service is generally available for commercial use. A multi-layered approach that includes encryption for data transmission is paramount, as well as leveraging one of the cloud’s most notable benefits: the ability to send out automatic updates and software patches as needed.
Though it’s great to have an entire month dedicated to spreading cybersecurity awareness, this initiative is undoubtedly a high priority all year long. Arcules is always committed to producing and maintaining solutions that are reliable and trustworthy, and we urge every consumer to take steps in an effort to vigilantly safeguard sensitive data from outside threats.
