Cybersecurity has become an integral part of modern technology in an era driven primarily by data. In 2020, cyber-attacks were rated as the fifth top-rated risk and had become the norm in both private and public sectors.
According to Statista, in the first half of 2022, there were 2.8 billion malware attacks globally, and the average cost of data breaches also increased by 12.7%, from $3.86 million in 2020 to $4.35 million in 2022.
To that end, organizations are investing more in cyber security to avoid the adverse effects associated with data breaches.
While having an in-house IT team can help protect your company from cyberattacks, they have to focus on other core IT services in most cases. Trying to oversee everything simultaneously can be a challenge for most, which is why companies outsource some of their IT services to third-party providers.
Managed IT services providers solely focus on a single or a few of your IT services, such as cyber security, and can play a considerable role in protecting your data. In this post, we look at the role of managed IT services in securing your data against malware attacks.
What Is A Data Breach?
A data breach is a security violation where protected confidential data or sensitive information is copied, transmitted, viewed, stolen, or accessed by someone unauthorized to perform the actions or without the knowledge of the data's owner. Regarding reputation and regulations, the consequences of data breaches are severe for both the public and private sectors.
Data breaches could also have an internal impact after the attack and affect every department somehow, resulting in operational downtime. Here are some cyberattacks that are expected to continue plaguing organizations in 2022.
- Social engineering: It remains one of the most common and dangerous attacks since it solely relies on human error and manipulation instead of technical vulnerabilities.
- Third-party exposure: As systems get more sophisticated, hackers can bypass your security by targeting third-party providers with access to their primary target.
- Cloud computing vulnerabilities: These attacks have increased by 150% in the last five years. As hackers become familiar with the system, their attacks become more sophisticated.
- Mobile device vulnerabilities: With the rise of remote work models, hackers are targeting mobile device management systems which ironically are supposed to manage devices in a way that secures personal data.
- Internet of Things (IoT): Most people don't realize that hackers might target their IoT devices to access their network. Combined with poor cyber hygiene, IoT vulnerabilities leave every company open to attacks.
- Ransomware: While they are not a new threat, they have become more sophisticated and expensive over the past few years. Not only does the victim lose money when paying the ransom, but they also lose income if the issue is not resolved.
How Managed IT Services Can Secure Your Data
Cyberattack prevention requires a proactive approach which is why it would be best to seek the services of a managed IT service provider with the skills, experience, and tools to keep your data safe.
Here are some ways that managed IT services can help secure your data:
1. Staff Training
As the world moves to a more human-centric approach, humans will be a vital part of any system, and since hackers mainly target human errors, your staff must get frequent training to help maintain their cyber hygiene.
Social engineering often includes phishing and email impersonation attacks, and your team needs to learn how to discern an authentic email or website from a fake one. Managed IT services offer on-site and online cyber security training through tutorials and other informational content.
2. Keep Everything Up to Date
In most cases, cyber attacks occur because your systems or cyber security infrastructure is outdated, leaving a weakness for hackers to exploit. Once a hacker has access to your network, it's often too late to take any preventative action, which is why it's essential to ensure your systems are up to date.
As part of their job, managed IT services can guarantee your systems are up to date through patch management systems that keep track of all your software and system updates.
3. Protect Sensitive Data
The world is full of different sophisticated malware, and a new one joins the list daily. Keeping up with all these attacks can prove to be a challenge, especially if you don't have any technical knowledge.
Managed IT services implement different techniques to ensure your sensitive data remains secure.
- Firewall: This is one of the most effective ways to shield yourself from cyberattacks. With sophisticated firewall systems, managed IT services help block any brute force attacks targeting your network before it penetrates and damages.
- Controlled access: Hackers can attack your network by physically walking into your company and plugging an infected USB into any computer. As an off-site solution, hackers will find it difficult to walk into a managed IT services facility since they significantly control who can access their facility or systems.
4. Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery
Protecting your company from attacks goes beyond data breaches. Proper backup and recovery protocols are also a core part of any cyber security process.
Business continuity and disaster recovery ensure your company continues operation with minimal interruptions and data loss in the event that you're actually attacked.
Managed IT services offer comprehensive and customizable business continuity and disaster recovery plans to keep your data secure in case of a network outage or attack.
5. Network Assessments
The core role of managed IT services is performing regular network assessments to find weak points that leave your company vulnerable to attacks. Network assessments cover everything from evaluating employee cyber hygiene to managing access to sensitive data. Managed IT services perform a network assessment to develop an effective cyber security strategy.
The Final Say: Avoiding Data Breaches Through Managed IT Services
As the threat of cyberattacks continues to grow, companies need to stay above hackers to guarantee their data security. However, given the many aspects of cyber security, your IT team could easily get overwhelmed, leaving you open to attacks and leading to employee fatigue.
As an experienced managed IT service provider, AIS helps businesses focus on their core business services while their skilled experts focus on IT services like cyber security, ensuring your business grows securely. Never worry about your IT services again; let us protect your business from data breaches by future-proofing your IT needs. Contact us today to learn more about how managed IT services can help secure your data.
