"How to tackle cyber threats?"—remains critical. The answer is multifaceted and requires a comprehensive approach.
Below is an outline of the essential elements that constitute an effective cybersecurity strategy.
A. Organizational elements
These elements are related to:
- Corporate culture
- Management buy-in and engagement of the workforce
- Focus on cyber resilience
- Infrastructure and assets: all assets connected to the internet, including business-critical applications, IoT devices, and other infrastructure components.
- Security Processes: processes and protocols that need to be established for securing the organization’s data, systems, and employees.
- Roles and Responsibilities: identifying who is responsible for implementing security measures, monitoring for threats, and responding to incidents.
POINTS 1 to 3:
Education, awareness, and the power of repetition are critical to addressing the first three elements of a cybersecurity strategy.
Approximately three-quarters of all security breaches are attributed to actions or inactions by employees. Common issues include the use of weak passwords, sending sensitive information to incorrect recipients, lost devices, neglecting to apply software patches, and falling victim to phishing attacks.
To mitigate these risks, organizations must prioritize ongoing education and awareness initiatives. Regularly scheduled cyber awareness training sessions can significantly enhance employees' understanding of cybersecurity threats and safe practices. For example, penetration testing and ethical hacking sessions, social engineering simulations, etc.
By leveraging these tools and strategies, organizations can clarify their cybersecurity policies,
emphasize the importance of compliance, and cultivate a culture of awareness and vigilance
among employees.
POINTS 4 to 6:
These points focus on formalizing processes, defining clear responsibilities, and establishing ultimate accountability. It is essential that these agreements are communicated clearly to all involved beforehand; assigning responsibilities during a crisis is simply too late. The internal and external communication protocols for handling incidents or crises must be established in advance, as they form a crucial part of disaster recovery plans designed to address worst- case scenarios.
Numerous providers specialize in conducting audits, ethical hacking, raising awareness, and developing processes and recovery plans. Your IT partner is well-versed in the landscape and can connect you with a provider that aligns with your organization's needs.
B. Technological elements
A well-designed IT architecture encompasses not only user-friendliness and application functionality but also the reliability and availability of the network. Your IT infrastructure is crucial to daily business operations, as the applications it supports and the online activities conducted are mission-critical. Therefore, implementing a robust security platform is essential.
The AXS Guard security platform offers features that nearly every organization requires. Additionally, it can be enhanced with advanced components to elevate your cybersecurity posture.
The platform prioritizes prevention, focusing on thwarting incidents and attacks before they can compromise your infrastructure or lead to data theft.
- Unified Threat Management
- 2. Threat Intelligence / Threat Protection
- Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
- Back-up & Recovery
1. Unified Threat Management
Unified Threat Management (UTM) is an approach to information security that consolidates multiple security functions into a single hardware or software installation. This contrasts with the traditional model of employing specific solutions for each function.
The most relevant functionalities of the AXS Guard security platform include:
- Next-generation firewall
The primary purpose of a firewall is to control incoming and outgoing communications between different zones of a network, typically between the internet and the company network. The firewall evaluates whether each communication (IP packet) should be allowed or blocked based on predefined rules. It is common to place the firewall behind the gateway or broadband modem, and it can also function as a router, making it a multifunctional security tool. - Intrusion Prevention & Detection Systemen (IPS/IDS): This additional security layer monitors allowed traffic to examine the payload of the packets,
enhancing the organization's defenses against potential threats..
- Content scanning en filtering on all mail and web traffic:
All email and web traffic—both HTTP and encrypted HTTPS—is subjected to rigorous checks
through various mechanisms. By employing a combination of detection methods and tools,
cyber threats can be swiftly isolated and neutralized.
- VPN acces: a Virtual Private Network (VPN) is primarily used when employees are away from the company location and need to establish a secure, encrypted connection between their devices —such as computers, smartphones, or tablets—and the company network over the internet.
2FA of MFA This method enhances authentication security by verifying a user's identity through
multiple factors.
The combination of these factors strengthens online access security.
Typical factors include:
- Something the user knows, such as a password or PIN code.
- Something the user has, like a badge, token, email address, or registered smartphone.
- A characteristic of the user, such as a fingerprint or facial recognition.
- The user's IP address or location (a variable factor).
- DNS serves as the address system for
the internet, facilitating the connection between web browsers and
websites by translating human-readable hostnames into IP addresses
and vice versa.
- DHCP: Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol is a network protocol that automates the configuration process for devices on IP networks. A DHCP server dynamically assigns an IP address and other network parameters to each device on a network, enabling communication with other IP networks.
The AXS Guard platform is more than just a comprehensive Unified Threat Management (UTM) system;
- Flexible Deployment Options: Choose between hardware, virtual, or Azure-based (cloud/hybrid) solutions to best suit your operational requirements.
- Tailored Software Bundles: Select from one of three software bundles—Basic, Standard, or Enterprise—based on the unique needs of your organization.
- Worry-Free Service: Enjoy peace of mind with the inclusion of the Worry-Free Service, which covers automatic software updates, hardware warranty, configuration backups, on- site hardware service, and technical support.
- AXS Guard Cloud: Gain access to the AXS Guard Cloud, an intuitive portal featuring clear dashboards for centralized management of your administration, monitoring, and configurations.
2. Threat Intelligence / Threat Protection
The DNS protocol was not originally designed with security in mind.
As a result, DNS security is a crucial network component that is often overlooked, despite research indicating that up to 91% of all malware exploits insecure DNS connections. By first validating DNS requests and blocking them when necessary, you can significantly reduce a substantial portion of the associated risks.
How DNS Security works
AXS Guard routes all DNS requests through a dedicated SecureDNS service, which assesses the reputation of the requested domains.
If the domain is whitelisted or deemed safe, the client is granted access.
If the domain is flagged as potentially harmful, the client is redirected to a DNS sinkhole, and suspicious traffic is logged and reported.
This mechanism enables the automatic detection and blocking of dangerous content and access to malicious websites at the DNS level.
Secure work outside the office
For employees working outside the office, the SecureDNS Agentcan be installed on client devices, such as laptops, to protect against online threats—even when not connected to the corporate network or without a VPN.
Active Monitoring & Reporting
AXS Guard provides the capability to report which users or devices attempt to connect to dangerous websites, and categorizes the sites based on the type of threat they represent.
This allows organizations to gain rapid insights into the content that is being blocked, when it is being blocked, and which hosts are affected.
Impacted hosts can then be isolated from the corporate network for further investigation.
The integration of SecureDNS within the AXS Guard platform provides greater visibility into network traffic compared to standalone DNS security solutions, as it arms organizations with vital intelligence that empowers them to prevent and respond to attacks more effectively.
3. Endpoint Detection & Response (EDR)
Every device connected to a network can serve as a potential gateway for hackers seeking access to your systems. An EDR solution monitors all endpoints, including laptops, smartphones, desktops, tablets, printers, IoT devices, servers, and more.
EDR solutions leverage artificial intelligence to enhance network security through behavioral analysis.
This capability allows for the rapid identification of unknown threats, such as Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) or zero-day exploits. In contrast to older endpoint protection methods that only detected known cyber threats, modern EDR actively monitors endpoints for suspicious activity, reporting them promptly. When an endpoint exhibits suspicious behavior, it is automatically isolated to prevent the spread of malware or viruses. This isolation also facilitates incident analysis, allowing security teams to neutralize the threat before the endpoint is restored to use.
Given that 70% of all data breaches originate from endpoints, it’s clear that EDR is a vital component of any cybersecurity strategy. It provides an additional layer of protection that can be seamlessly integrated with other solutions, such as antivirus software, DNS Security, and SIEM platforms. Thus, EDR serves as a crucial preventive measure.
Why choose Endpoint Detection & Response (EDR)?
- AI-Powered Detection: Leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, EDR identifies advanced cyber threats by analyzing behavioral patterns and anomalous activities, resulting in faster response times with guided or autonomous remediation.
- Simplified Analysis: This solution maps threats to the MITRE ATT&CK framework and employs intuitive behavior trees and visualizations, making threat analysis a straightforward process.
- Deep Visibility: QRadar EDR uncovers hidden threats using NanoOS, a unique hypervisor-based solution that operates outside the operating system, remaining invisible to attackers.
- Seamless Integration: QRadar features a bidirectional API that integrates effortlessly with popular SIEM and SOAR tools, facilitating centralized management and response.
- Proactive Threat Detection & Hunting: QRadar EDR keeps you ahead of emerging threats with AI-driven detection that continuously learns and adapts. Its advanced threat hunting capabilities utilize machine learning and extensive telemetry to uncover hidden vulnerabilities.
4. Back-up & Recovery
Effective disaster recovery planning is essential for defining your backup and recovery requirements. The processes, tools, and policies you implement will guide your choice of backup and recovery solutions.
When evaluating options, consider criteria such as backup frequency, retention period, recovery speed, data encryption, compression, deduplication, and verification. Additionally, as with any purchasing decision, it is important to compare costs, service levels, and support to ensure you select the best solution to accommodate your needs.
What elements does a cybersecurity strategy consist of? An overview.