Why Do I Have to Comply With Cybersecurity Standards?
Almost every organizations has to "comply" with some form of regulation or law in order to protect their customers or ensure the quality of a product. For instance, restaurants must ensure that the ingredients they use are fresh and their cooking spaces sanitized and every public building must adhere to the local fire code in order to protect individuals in the event of a disaster. While compliance can be complex, expensive, and at times frustrating these regulations exist to protect your organization as well as the businesses you serve.
Cybersecurity is no different. Continue reading to learn more about what cybersecurity compliance is and how it may impact your business.
What is Cybersecurity Compliance?
Compliance, when applied to cybersecurity, helps ensure that every organization takes the necessary steps to protect its own company data in addition to its clients resources. Regulations vary by industry, but for every organizations it involves technical, operational, and administrative controls that work together to create a secure environment. Whether data is at rest or moving across the network, being compliant means protecting the integrity and confidentiality throughout the entire process. As previously mentioned, compliance may vary across industries. While this makes sense considering the healthcare industry works with different data than the manufacturing or financial sector, it can also make compliance confusing for organizations who fall under multiple categories. Even so, compliance is an integral part of almost every business.
Why is Compliance Important?
Every business is at risk to falling victim to a cyberattack. This means that for every organization, security is a necessity not an optional feature. Compliance can give these organizations a standardized framework that can provide guidance into what controls are effective for their industries. Through compliance, organizations are able to protect sensitive data, meet regulatory requirements, and by extension minimize risk.
Additionally, the consequences of noncompliance are extreme. If an organization is breached and found to be neglecting security controls, they could face harsh legal consequences. This could include large fines in addition to the cost of the initial breach. For many SMBs, one successful attack is enough to ensure permanent closure. In the event that a business does survive the financial consequences of a data breach, the reputational damage may be the final nail in the coffin.
If your business is known to be untrustworthy, why should potential customers trust your with their data?
Common Compliance Frameworks
NIST Cybersecurity Framework -
The NIST cybersecurity framework consists of six core functions that provide guidance to industry, government agencies, and various other organizations regarding cyber risk. Now in its second version, the NIST CSF addresses the continually evolving threat landscape and provides resources for any organization looking to bolster its security posture.
HIPAA -
HIPAA (Health insurance Portability and Accountability act) is one of the more commonly known security frameworks. HIPAA provides regulations for how healthcare providers, and insurers protect personal health information.
PCI DSS -
Another common framework, the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) applies to any organizations that accepts, processes, or stores credit card data. This framework plays an integral role in preventing credit card fraud.
What Should You Do?
Every organizations must first learn whether or not they must be compliant within their industry. If so, taking the time to inventory assets, choosing a framework, and setting up controls will take up the bulk of an organizations work. Unfortunately, compliance can be expensive and complex.
CorpInfoTech can help SMBs become and maintain compliance within their industry. We can assess your business for vulnerabilities and give you a practical and comprehensive plan of action to better protect your business!
CorpInfoTech (Corporate Information Technologies) provides small to mid-market organizations with expert I.T. services including compliance assessment, cybersecurity penetration tests, and comprehensive business continuity planning services. CorpInfoTech can help organizations, quantify, create, refine, and mitigate the risks presented by business threatening disasters in whatever form they may be disguised.
