Cybersecurity is an essential part of business. We’re relying on Cloud technologies more and more whilst the number and impact of cyber threats has grown exponentially. Going hand in hand with this, we very often hear scary statistics – 50% of businesses reported being compromised by a cyber attack in the last 12 months – and whilst these are impactful, many people are left wondering what that actually means and what the impact of being compromised is. In this article, we’ll look at what being compromised means, highlight the most prevalent methods of compromise and understand the importance of proactive measures.
Business Compromise, Data Compromise and Business Email Compromise: What are they?
The language around cyber security is often confusing – phrases that aren’t really interchangeable are used interchangeably, and there is a lot of technical language that doesn’t mean much to those outside of the technical sphere. ‘Compromise’ is one of these – when we hear that a business has been compromised, what does it mean? Well, it can mean a few different things…
Business Compromise: When an unauthorised user has gained access to an aspect of your business via a successful cyber attack.
Data Compromise: Following a Business Compromise, an unauthorised user has gained access to business data. This is the same as a ‘data breach’.
Business Email Compromise (also called Email Account Compromise): A specific type of cyber attack that uses email to deceive businesses into divulging confidential information resulting in data compromise, or gaining money. Phishing is a very common type of Business Email Compromise. Phishing involves sending a fraudulent email to someone to lure them into clicking a link to download malware or entering log in details allowing further access to confidential business data. Many types of Business Email Compromise, including some phishing attacks, are highly targeted attacks that involve Social Engineering and manipulation – for example, impersonating a director or supplier and requesting that a payment goes to a different account to usual.
Unfortunately, phishing is so commonplace both in and outside of business, that it represents the single most common form of cyber crime.
The Impact of Being Compromised
Now we understand about the different types and meaning of ‘compromise’, we can think about the business impact of being compromised. Whilst Business Compromise isn’t okay by any stretch, it doesn’t always result in a data breach. It will likely result in operational disruption and in turn financial losses. It’s also a surefire signal that your business needs to do more to prevent cyberattacks – cyber security should be top of your list of priorities following any sort of Business Compromise. It’s worth noting as well that, cyber attackers sometimes compromise a business and then wait for several days, weeks or months before launching a second stage of attack. This means that there seemingly being no impact in the first instance, isn’t always the case.
If data has been compromised then the impact is much more profound and can lead to:
Financial Loss
If you’ve fallen victim to a compromise that results in a false payment for example, then all that money will be lost. Businesses may lose a substantial amount through fraudulent transactions and, following that, recovery efforts.
Operational Disruption
It can take weeks and weeks to recover from being compromised disrupting business operations, leading to downtime and lost productivity. This disruption can have a ripple effect, impacting customers and partners, and the longer you’re business is impacted for, the bigger hole there’ll also be in your pipeline.
Reputational Damage
A cybersecurity breach can damage a business’s reputation, erasing customer trust and loyalty. The long-term impact on brand image can be challenging to recover from.
Legal and Regulatory Consequences
Businesses may face legal repercussions and fines for failing to protect sensitive data. Compliance with cybersecurity regulations is crucial to avoid these penalties.
Best Practices for Preventing Cybersecurity Compromises
Now we know what being compromised means and the impact it can have, how can we actually prevent it?
Backup Your Data (and Practise Recovering)
Regularly back up critical data securely. Practise recovery to ensure you’re prepared. Effective backups can save your business if data loss has occurred.
Strengthen Your Passwords
Use long, complex, unique passwords for different accounts. Administrators should have separate admin and user accounts – this ensures that if a user account is compromised, a hacker won’t automatically have admin rights.
Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
Add an extra security layer with MFA. Even if a hacker has your password, they can’t access your accounts without the second factor.
Conditional Access Policies
Conditional Access ensures that only authorised users can access sensitive information by looking at patterns of behaviour. For example, if a user tries to log in from a different country, then access might be blocked.
Use Microsoft’s Safe Links and Safe Attachments
This scans all attachments and links that are sent to your Outlook email to see if they portray malicious behaviour. If they do, users can’t access them. This is crucial in the prevention of Business Email Compromise.
Monitor for suspicious activity
You can do this yourself, but it’s better to have a tool or team to do this for you. We use Huntress which continuously monitors systems for suspicious activity, unauthorised logins and credential theft, enabling early threat detection and response.
Educate Your Users
User education is key to preventing cyber attacks. Ensuring that employees understand the threats, how they’re implemented and what to do if they see something suspicious is essential. User education and documentation also ensures everyone in your organisation is on the same page, so there’s no guesswork.
In conclusion, the impact of a cybersecurity compromise on a business can be profound, affecting finances, operations, reputation, and legal standing. Proactive measures, such as early threat detection, employee training, and robust cybersecurity solutions, are essential to protect against these threats, safeguard the future of your business and ensure long-term success. If you’d like to learn more about how compromise can affect your specific business, please fill in the form below or give us a call.