An IT security assessment identifies and mitigates cyber threats to your company by evaluating five key components of your IT ecosystem.
Your Network
A network security assessment involves examining your IT network and network connections, such as virtual private networks, hosting, etc. Especially with more employees connecting to your network remotely, it’s critical to ensure emails, messaging and other communications are managed through secure, private channels with the appropriate level of access control.
Your Hardware
Hardware includes laptops, desktops, smartphones, tablets, servers and routers, and they are a prime gateway into your data for hackers. Assessing your hardware means reviewing how your devices are managed at the company and employee levels.
For example, are the IT security best practices part of your company policy? Is there a plan in place should hardware be lost or stolen? Is private data accessible only to those who are authorized to view it? Do employees know to install, update and use security software effectively?
Your Software
Likely, much of your business runs on software, either purchased or licensed. An assessment of your software ensures licenses are compliant and current to avoid unexpected expirations. Also, it determines if programs are up to date on security and capable of protecting against known and future cyber threats. And, it gauges the software’s integrity in terms of adequate encryption methods and ability to restrict access and administrator permissions.
Your Cloud Service
For businesses not taking advantage of Invision’s cloud services, the security assessment can verify that the way employees access, collect and process customer and company data is secure and compliant.
Cloud hosting is assessed in line with your industry’s standards. This assessment ensures that you’re armed with knowledge to keep your company compliant and your data secure.
Your Company Policies and Processes
Your employees’ awareness of cyber threats and use of security protocols are your best defense against a data breach or cyber crime. The best IT security in the world can’t protect your data against staff who aren’t aware how to use the IT security tools you provide, especially considering the many ways they are working today, such as remotely on their personal phones, tablets, etc. The assessment determines how strong your company’s policies and processes are so you can educate and act accordingly to boost security.
READ: Hackers Ecstatic Over Employees Working from Home
For Business Owners, What You Don’t Know CAN Hurt Your Company
If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it, right? Wrong. Business owners live and die by evaluating facts and making informed business decisions the best they can with the information they have. Even when forecasting or going purely on gut instinct, concrete knowledge helps guide their direction. So, while your network, hardware, software, cloud service, employees’ habits and internal processes seem to work in tandem and pose no security risk, the fact of the matter is that without occasional IT security audits, you simply cannot know for certain.
IT security is a moving target. Just when measures are put in place to fight off a new threat, another risk comes along. To continue identifying and closing gaps in your security, audits must be performed regularly to stay ahead of new phishing schemes, malware and hacker attacks. Performing an IT security assessment shouldn’t fall on your shoulders. It is a task best left to IT consultants, like Invision, who specialize in IT security and whose job it is to stay on top of the latest threats. Like your attorney, accountant and even janitorial service, we are here to provide expertise in our field so you can focus on running your business.
Through Invision’s IT security assessment, you gain deep, unbiased insights into where your company’s cyber security risks are so that you can:
- Identify all security weaknesses in your IT approach and structure
- Learn about and understand how different types of cyber threats can affect your business
- Allocate your IT budget in the right places for the right reasons
- Take your IT security to a level that meets your industry’s compliance or best practices standards
READ: Why You Should Include Email Security as Part of Your IT Security Plan
Getting Started with Your IT Security Assessment is Easy
Getting started on your IT security assessment is easy. And by easy we mean moving a few fingers to make a phone call or submit an online form.
Don’t clean the house before the housecleaners arrive, per se, unless you are aware of a glaring IT security risk and have a solution in place that you haven’t implemented yet. Invision’s IT security assessments identify internal and external threats to your data and assets. They are designed to give you an accurate “state of the union” look at your company’s current vulnerabilities and provide security solution recommendations that help you wisely allocate your IT budget for the best outcomes.
Interested in learning more about preventing data breaches and cyber attacks for your business or ready to schedule your IT security assessment? Contact Kansas City’s best IT consulting group today.
