Deciding if your business or company data is safe or not safe requires more than just securing your data, it also means knowing which data to secure at what level. Protecting yourself has the potential to be expensive and time consuming, so you want the right network security plan for your company and data.
This article is intended to help you understand the different layers of data, CI terms and concept definitions, where the different data falls in the security scheme, and how to secure all of your data correctly.
Terms and Categories
If you deal with a CI government and global regulated sector, your data security game plan is more intense, more secure, and more detailed. To understand data safeguarding practices, make yourself familiar with the correct terminology. A few terms of jargon to know are:
- CI-Critical Infrastructure: According to Infracritical, “The term “critical infrastructure” refers to assets of physical and computer-based systems that are essential to the minimum operations of an economy and its government. They include, but are not limited to, telecommunications, energy, banking and finance, transportation, water systems and emergency services, both government and private.”
- CIP-Critical Infrastructure Protection: The protection of all designated CI sectors (see the government list of sectors below).
- CI Sectors: Homeland Security defines the Critical Infrastructure sectors to be: Chemical, Communications, Dams, Commercial Facilities, Critical Manufacturing, Defense Industrial, Emergency Services, Financial Services, Government Facilities, Information Technology, Energy, Food and Agriculture, Healthcare and Public Health, Nuclear Reactors, materials, and Waste, Transportation, and Water and Water waste.
- CIPC– Critical Infrastructure Protection Committee: A committee formed to help promote and advance the physical as well as the cyber component of the different sectors relative to your business.
Four Point Data Security Plan
Obviously, if your company or business deals with CI assets and data, then your company will work with the government following their directives to protect that data. However, you would not apply that same stringent protection, which equals costly labor and manpower, to non-CI data. So, to distinguish what data and information needsto be secured at the appropriate level, you need a personal plan.
- Define: Define your CIand your non-CI data, categorize the data components and pieces, and determine the life of each critical piece.
- Partner and Collaborate: Develop networks of support and education, diagram and then establish the national sector forum, form teams of security and assessment, continue with your research and development within the partnerships, and lastly develop joint goals and long-term plans. In essence, with CI data, one of your partners is very much the government.
- Risk Management: No one ever wants to consider what happens when a data breech occurs at any level of his or her company, but the best data defense is a stellar offense. Consider the data and risk management now, so if the emergency need arises you and your business are ready with a swift and efficient fix. Frequently revisit this component in your business plan. You should establish a committee for every level and partner each level committee with an emergency response crew. Then assess each sector of your CI data. This process is ongoing and it never stops. Develop emergency plans, continuous emergency training, emergency programs, and then assess the emergency plan foundations. Every single person in the company needs to know his or her duty so well; he or she could do in while sleeping. Lastly, be honest and determine where you are vulnerable. You are only as strong as your weakest point. Gather a team to create a plan and correct any detected vulnerability immediately.
- Recaps and Review: This process is fluid. You must recap and review steps one through three. Once you get to step four, you make your corrections and begin with step one again. This four-step plan is never finished or at rest.
Non-CI relative data must also be secured. Your clients’ information, your payroll, your contacts, and such information are very important. For those data aspects, also form an appropriate plan of security. This plan will not hold all the CI components, but your security and IT team must still monitor and assess the non-CI sector on a regular basis.
With non-CI data, you will still need a security team, an assessment team, an analysis review, and a strong predictive attitude coupled with vigilance.
Long Term Network Security
No one ever wants a CI or non-CI data failure or compromise. The government goes to great lengths to make sure that the correct check points are in place for your company. Whatever sector or sectors your company delves in must have the correct measures for CIP considering the global regulatory requirements.
All your data works and lives on a platform similar to an IT platform and incorporates your IT crew. Your security must involve the four steps in a circular map. That security map actually starts with your IT team. Their security measures will include: core security services, security analytics, securing applications and enablement of those applications, and securing business processes as related to governmental directives (for CI).
Related: Top 5 Ways to Secure Your Network
Your Data Security Obligations
At a glance, your data security obligations merged with the governmental and global requirements require you and your company to carefully:
- Perform predictive analysis of your data
- Perform pattern analysis of your data
- Gather risk intelligence in relation to the company and data
- Gather threat intelligence in relation to the company and data
- Converge all these security measures and review the results
These same steps will be used as a checklist for your non-CI data. Keeping all of your important company data safe from rogues and cyber thieves is a 24/7 job. That job is fluid and never ending. Use this guide for help in understanding the concepts and procedures involved in keeping data safe and secure.
You can turn to a TVG Consulting if you have any questions or concerns about the safety and the security of your company’s data. Data security is our business.
Related: Understanding How Network Security Reduces Costly Downtime