We live in a technological era where companies and private organizations need more and more computer systems to maintain a structure in line with market objectives.
These necessary technological resources are becoming more and more sophisticated and complex and bring more functionalities to the organizations. At the same time, all this technology makes companies increasingly vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Thus we see that it is increasingly essential to bet on a sound cybersecurity system.
Most of the cyberattacks are on cloud storage sites. So working on the privacy of your cloud has become a major cybersecurity trend of late. If you want to know how to protect yourself from cyberattacks, take a look at Erbis’ case studies.
How do you know which IT security systems your company needs? The first thing you need to do is a cybersecurity audit.
What Is A Cybersecurity Audit?
A cybersecurity audit is one of the essential parts of a system to block a possible cyber attack, so it is of particular interest to know what it is and how we should do to keep these cyber attacks away from the interests of our organization.
It is necessary to perform this type of cybersecurity audit both internally and externally to check the security status of the company’s systems or applications. In these audits, the designs are checked for attacks or possible security breaches that may exist. It should be a cyclical or periodic check, as it provides new information every short period.
Periodic audits are not mandatory in all companies, especially private companies. Still, it is highly recommended to prevent or see the possible problems that may occur in the security systems. This type of cybersecurity audit promotes improved systems in terms of good practices in these times of constant changes and technological renovations.
Which Companies Need A Cybersecurity Audit?
It is unthinkable today that there are companies that do not depend on IT. Therefore, any company, whether its size in terms of the number of employees or the wide range of operation, all have to a greater or lesser extent the possibility of suffering any cyber attack.
As many cybersecurity experts claim, it is currently the large companies that are aware of this problem. It is essential to show that the reality is different. No matter the company’s size, whether small, medium, or large, all are exposed to a cyberattack where they enter their hard drives and can lose all the essential data for the company, with all the consequences.
For this reason, all companies should perform a cybersecurity audit. To know the possible vulnerabilities that our company may have without being aware of them. These can involve both the physical security of the company and the computer systems or both security systems at the same time.
Steps To Follow To Perform A Cybersecurity Audit
To perform a cybersecurity audit, it is advisable to follow these steps to carry it out successfully:
Setting the Objective
The first thing to determine is the purpose of the cybersecurity audit being conducted. One purpose of conducting a cybersecurity audit is to confirm the standard to ensure compliance with the required cybersecurity policy.
Planning
Once the objectives of the cybersecurity audit are clear, the steps to be followed must be planned. The services to be audited will be established, and the operating systems installed in the company will be identified.
Obtaining Information
It is necessary to gather as much information as possible to evaluate how the company’s IT area works, the technologies, and the policies and protocols that target the cybersecurity audit.
This information can be obtained by interviewing employees, reviewing documentation, analyzing software and hardware specifications, and using tools to measure the vulnerability and security of the company’s systems.
Situation Analysis
All the information collected up to this point has to be analyzed to find vulnerabilities and flaws in the company’s systems.
Report of Results
After this analysis and to know the company’s actual state, a detailed report of the results extracted from the audit is made. This report will explain the cybersecurity vulnerabilities that have been located and propose solutions and recommendations to solve them. It will also explain the company’s recommended actions in each of the critical points (against cyber-attacks) that have been found.
With this report, company managers will know the current state of their IT systems and their security policies. They will then be able to make the appropriate decisions to improve and increase their cybersecurity level.
Types of Cybersecurity Audit
Not all cybersecurity audits are the same. Internal or external audits can be differentiated. They differ depending on who performs the audit. If it is done by people who work in the company itself, it is called internal, and when it is done by companies independent of the entity, it is considered an external audit.
Audits According to the Objective:
These are cybersecurity audits that are differentiated according to the objective they pursue. The most common are:
Forensic
These are cybersecurity audits performed after a security incident has occurred. Its objective is to identify and collect digital evidence to establish the causes that have produced it.
Web
They are audits that aim to know the security of applications and web pages that allow us to discover any failure or vulnerability in implementing the same.
Code Audits
These are quality tests on computer applications (at source code level) that allow us to know and identify possible vulnerabilities in any software.
Ethical Hacking
The way to test security measures is to put them to the test, which is the purpose of this service. It is an intrusion test that tries to use the same hacking techniques and tools as the attackers to test computer security.
Vulnerability Analysis
Cybersecurity audits aim to detect possible security holes in applications in search of vulnerabilities and test the robustness of passwords.
Networking
In an Internet plagued by external attacks, network security must be a priority for your company. This type of audit will first focus on mapping the network to discover all connected devices. Then it will be time to verify firmware updates, antivirus signatures, check firewall rules, and others.
Audits According To The Information Provided:
White Box Audits
In this type, the auditors have all the knowledge and access in advance of the elements and infrastructures to be analyzed.
Gray Box Audits
In this case, the auditors have limited access to the organization’s systems and data. To perform this type of audit, what is done is to simulate an internal cyber-attack (as if it were an employee) with bad intentions.
Black Box Audit
In this audit, there is no knowledge of any information or access. Here the auditor starts from the beginning and will try to discover the possible ways to get into the internal system from outside the company. In this case, the cyber-attack to be simulated is external.
Conclusion
As we have already mentioned, performing cybersecurity audits will provide knowledge of your company’s vulnerabilities at the IT level. It will help prevent a loss of data or information theft, so it is essential to perform it in all companies.
To perform this type of cybersecurity audit is not always easy to do it from the inside. To be able to apply it, you can look for a specialized partner that generates confidence and accompanies you throughout the development of the cybersecurity system.
Follow Techiemag for more!
Table of Contents
