VIEWPOINT
WHEN GOOD JUST ISN’T GOOD ENOUGH MARTIN MACKAY, SVP, EMEA AT PROOFPOINT, ON HOW TO BUILD A ROBUST CYBER DEFENCE
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here is a common misconception among organisations globally that having a ‘good’ security posture will keep their allimportant business data safe and cyber criminals out. But what does ‘good’ really look like, and is it good enough? Today’s threats target people, not infrastructure. So, while technical solutions and controls remain crucial in building a robust cyber defence, they are just one aspect of a broad and deep barrier against the latest threats. Whether via malicious links, account compromise, or social engineering, threat actors are turning their attention to what, for many organisations, is the last line 38
CXO INSIGHT ME
OCTOBER 2020
of defence. A last line that is often illprepared. Its people. All it takes is one click, from one employee. No matter how robust your technical systems are, cyber criminals have just found their way into your organisation. In fact, according to Proofpoint’s recent survey of IT leaders in the UAE, 55% of CSOs and CISOs cited human error and lack of security awareness as one of the biggest IT security risks. It is therefore crucial to have in place an approach that puts people at the heart of cyber defence – ensuring employees are not just able to spot and deter attacks but are acutely aware of their role in keeping our organisations safe.
Navigating a new normal With millions more employees working from home, outside the protections of the office environment, organisations worldwide have had their attack surfaces widen, leaving them more exposed to cyber threats during this global crisis than ever before. Cybercriminals are all too aware of this fact and have wasted no time exploiting the opportunity. Using social engineering attacks, cybercriminals trick employees so they can steal credentials, siphon sensitive data, reroute pay checks and fraudulently transfer funds. No matter the technical solution in place, one click is all it takes for a cyber attack to be successful.
