One of the more challenging parts of implementing good cyber security for any business is the process of first assessing the risks and then creating an effective strategy.
Yet knowing the strength of that strategy as well as upholding its effectiveness requires measuring the gathering and monitoring of certain metrics that indicate whether the right outcome has been achieved.
Using the CARE method, businesses can work with their cyber security service providers to analyze their cybersecurity strategies, make changes where required, and benefit from more secure online practices.
- Consistency - The first metric that must be measured when testing out any cybersecurity strategy is its consistency and whether the same results are produced as time passes as well as throughout the entire company. Monthly and quarterly assessments of all controls in place should be made to seek out weak spots in the strategy and where more attention is needed.
- Adequacy - Cybersecurity controls must be measured to assure that they meet the needs of the business as well as the stakeholders and that they remain protective. Along with consistency measurements, those controls must be continuously tested, adjusted, patched, and updated to stay effective.
- Reasonableness - To address reasonability, cyber security services must be appropriate for the company based on how the business is run as well as fairly applied based on the amount of company-wide feedback they generate. Effectively, cyber security strategies must be reasonable for employees to adhere to for the best results and make sense to everyone in the company for them to change bad habits and adopt newer, safer ones.
- Effectiveness - There must be metrics that measure whether, with all the above points considered, the cyber security services are achieving the desired effect to protect the business. This might show up as fewer security issues being discovered, improved vulnerability remediation, and overall tighter security that is being adhered to more easily by all employees.
Though it is possible for any business to put together a seemingly effective cybersecurity protection plan, actually knowing the effectiveness of that plan requires various types and levels of assessment.
Using the CARE process mentioned above, cyber security officers within a company can monitor strategies developed with the help of professional cyber security services, make sure they are performing correctly, then act together to improve the process.
Over time as each step in the CARE process is improved, the result will be a working cybersecurity strategy and a reduced risk of attacks from damaging cyber threats.