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Computer security is an ongoing concern for enterprises. There are many components of cybersecurity planning - data loss prevention, digital encryption, network firewalls and user authentication, to name a few - and a weakness in one of the links can be exploited to cause problems in the others. Many organizations devote significant amounts of time, labor and financial resources to cybercrime prevention and business security, but despite their best efforts, some may not be doing enough.

A recent research study by the Enterprise Strategy Group found that cybersecurity defenses were sorely lacking in several areas, from awareness to detection to response. The market research firm surveyed 315 IT security professionals working for North American enterprises. While most of the respondents said that they currently dealt with malware that is smarter and stealthier than ever before, 62 percent said that their organizations' endpoint security measures were insufficient for zero-day malware protection and evolving cyberthreats.

User habits and weak security habits cited as risk factors
As other recent studies on computer security have indicated, business users continue to pose the biggest security risk. Educating and training employees is an onerous and time-consuming task, and there's no guarantee that personnel will always use good judgment after they've been made aware of their poor practices. Seventy-two percent of the respondents said that the average organization is vulnerable or extremely vulnerable to a cyberattack, but many cited several reasons for alarm. According to the study, 58 percent of respondents attributed successful data breaches to insufficient user knowledge, while 29 percent said increased use of social networking sites by employees played a role in data leaks. Twenty-nine percent said that non-IT employees' lack of cybersecurity training posed a greater threat, and 30 percent stated that mobile apps were a risk factor. 

Budgetary issues may also play a role in organizations' vulnerability to a cyberattack. Businesses constantly search for comprehensive yet cost-effective solutions. According to ESG, 55 percent of respondents stated that their organizations had set aside funds to invest in anti-malware technologies in 2013, while 74 percent said that their firms have upped their security budgets over the past two years in an effort to mitigate their risk.

"When it comes to managing malware risk, enterprises would be best served by implementing a layered approach using proactive and reactive lines of defense through their networks," said ESG senior principal analyst Jon Oltsik in a statement accompanying the report's release. "Because employee actions can greatly impact computer security, educating employees on potential threats and how to avoid them should be made a priority."

Enterprises should use SSL certificates as part of a mutli-layered security approach to protect data during transmission.

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Thawte
The Gateway
Century Lane
Century City, 7441
Cape Town
South Africa

Postal Address:
P O Box 15986
Panorama 7500
Cape Town
South Africa

Call: +353 1 793 9141
Fax: +27 21 819 2950