Choosing a cybersecurity threat solution provider can be a daunting task. Infosec is a huge, rapidly-growing industry — the global cybersecurity market is projected to reach $259 billion by 2025. There are a lot of cybersecurity solutions available and even more cybersecurity threats to worry about.
If you’ve been tasked with finding a solution provider, you’re not alone. According to EY’s Global Information Security Survey, 77% of organizations are looking for more sophisticated cybersecurity solutions; those organizations have already put basic cybersecurity protections in place and are now seeking to fine-tune tune their capabilities.
But choosing a solution provider can seem overwhelming, especially if you’re not sure what you’re looking for. Here are a few suggestions that will make your search easier.
1. Know your cybersecurity threats
While the world of cyber threats is vast, the specific security issues you’re trying to solve for your organization are finite. Be clear about the problems you need your cybersecurity solution to solve.
All threats fall into three categories: External, Internal and Partner. According to Verizon’s latest Data Breach Investigations Report, external threats, like attacks, comprise more than 70% of breaches at businesses, followed by internal breaches at more than 30%, and partner threats at less than 10%.
What sort of threats does your organization face? If you’re up against frequent attacks by cybercriminals, you’ll need a different solution than the one you’ll need to combat internal threats (such as the wrong people having access to specific information.)
2. Be honest about what you can accomplish in-house
Be honest with yourself: does your organization have the staff to manage cybersecurity in-house? And then ask another question: does your current staff have the capacity to manage all the risk your company has taken on?
If the answers to those questions are “no,” you’re in good company. Many organizations outsource. Only 40% of smaller organizations have a security operations center, while even many large companies don’t have security operations centers in house — according to EY, 30% of big organizations outsource security.
Examine your organization and be honest about what you can really do well in-house. If your existing staff is overworked or doesn’t have the expertise to manage specific risks, you’ll need to find a solution that can cover those threats.
If you try to cut corners by keeping all your security in-house, you may end up losing money instead — according to the 2019 Cost of a Data Breach Study from IBM Security and the Ponemon Institute, the average total cost of a data breach is $3.92 million.
3. Take your industry into account
cybersecurity isn’t one-size-fits-all. From government organizations to finance, every industry has its own regulations, standards, and best practices when it comes to information security. Healthcare organizations must comply with HIPAA’s security rules, for example, while U.S. federal agencies must abide by NIST SP 800-53.
Additionally, organizations may opt into the international ISO 27000 standards or NIST frameworks, and organizations who do business with customers in Europe will have to abide by GDPR’s rules.
Any cybersecurity solution you partner with should be familiar with these rules and regulations, and should hopefully already be compliant with the standard and frameworks your organization has to abide by.
Take a look at their past clients. Are those clients in your industry? And are those clients pleased with this solution?
4. Know when you’re getting the hard sell
Breaches are scary — they mean a loss of valuable data, money, and something much more difficult to quantify — a loss of customer trust.
That said, when you’re shopping for a solution, the vendor should not be trying to prey on your worst information security fears in order to make a sale. A reputable cybersecurity solution acts as a partner to your organization and they should be focused on your needs rather than scare tactics.
A good solution provider will evaluate your company’s existing cybersecurity practices and make recommendations that will help you mitigate your risk.
5. Know who has access to your data and networks
You might have a good handle on your employees’ information security habits, but do you know who else has access to your systems and networks? Your third parties.
Risk in the supply chain is a big deal. Cybercriminals can often get at your data through your third parties — like cloud providers — who may not have the cybersecurity standards in place that you do. And, if that happens, you’re just at fault for the breach as your vendor is.
In order to limit risk, you need to know who your third parties are, what they have access to, and what their risk profiles are.
Once you’ve done that, you’ll know if your organization is at risk of a third-party breach, and if you’ll need to choose a cybersecurity solution that specializes in third party and vendor threat management.
This a common need among organizations. Remember how EY’s survey pointed to a large number of companies who were outsourcing security? Well, 84% of those companies outsource vendor risk management.
The best defense is a thoughtful offense
According to EY, 76 percent of organizations only increased their security budget after a major data breach, but there’s no reason to wait until you’ve been breached to start looking for cybersecurity solutions that will address your specific risk profile.
Taking the time to find a security solution that’s right for your organization’s unique security needs is an important step when it comes to finding a cybersecurity partner that will help you evaluate and mitigate your risk before a breach even happens.
