Why your business needs a Cyber Security Risk Assessment

This October is Cyber Security Awareness Month, an annual reminder for all Australians to stay secure online. Each year, the Australian Signals Directorate chooses a theme, this year is ‘Be cyber wise – don’t compromise’ to underscore the crucial role of cyber security fundamentals in building a strong foundation for managing cyber risk.

You cannot effectively manage cyber risk without understanding the threats to your business. While measures like multi-factor authentication, antivirus, and awareness training form a solid foundation for enhancing cyber security, they don’t offer comprehensive protection against all potential threats to the business. For this reason, regular cyber security risk assessments (CSRAs) are essential to identifying the gaps and effectively managing risk.

Why undergo a cyber security risk assessment?

Here are five benefits your business can expect from a cyber security risk assessment.

1. Identify and prioritise risks: A CSRA identifies risks and threats, including their likelihood to occur and impact on the business. A risk assessment helps your organisation gain a clear understanding of cyber risks and make informed decisions based on compliance needs and risk tolerance. Prioritising the most pertinent risks and threats also enables your business to strategically direct resources. 
2. Gain unbiased insights into internal operations: An independent review offers a fresh perspective on your cyber security posture. A CSRA might uncover skills gaps, process inefficiencies or resource constraints. Incorporating recognised frameworks, such as the Essential Eight Maturity Model and NIST, to benchmark your organisation against best practices and provide an assessment without bias towards vendors or products.
3. Boost stakeholder trust: Regularly assessing your cyber security posture demonstrates to partners, stakeholders and the board that you have committed to securing your organisation. As company boards seek insight into their organisation’s cyber risk, a CSRA ensures that this risk is effectively managed.
4. Refine incident response: Strengthening cyber security is about more than simply addressing vulnerabilities; you need a strategy in the event of a cyber incident. A CSRA provides insights for finetuning your incident response strategy and minimising potential damages if your organisation experiences an attack.
5. Optimise cyber insurance: Sophos’ report on ‘The State of Ransomware 2022’ found that 94% of businesses with cyber insurance found it harder to secure coverage again. A proactive approach to cyber security will work in your favour when renewing or taking out coverage because insurers will look favourably at organisations that regularly undertake assessments to identify and manage risk.

Does your organisation really need a risk assessment?

You might wonder whether your organisation really needs a risk assessment. We frequently encounter the following common misconceptions about cyber security:

• We’re already doing enough: While multi-factor authentication (MFA), backup and antivirus software all contribute to strengthening your cyber security posture, they are not enough alone. A CSRA provides a holistic perspective of your organisation’s risks and suggests further strategies, such as team training, threat monitoring and incident response. It is not a means of simply adding layers of technology to the problem but a process for building a comprehensive strategy to manage risks and regulatory compliance.
• Our IT looks after that: While your MSP or internal IT team lays the foundation for security, they might not frame it within an overall risk management strategy. A CSRA will benchmark your organisation against best practices and conduct an in-depth assessment that your daily operations might not cover.
• We don’t store sensitive information: Threat actors do not target organisations solely to gain access to Personally Identifiable Information (PII) or Intellectual Property (IP). Cyber attacks are often opportunistic. A threat actor might see value in disrupting your operations or holding your data for ransom, even if you are not a large enterprise. The Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) emphasised this in their report for FY2022, highlighting the average cost of cybercrime for small businesses was $39,000.

RODIN’s cyber security risk assessment process

We designed our CSRA process to provide a thorough understanding of organisations’ cyber security standing. From initiation to actionable planning, we follow a structured approach:

• Risk assessment: Our team thoroughly evaluates your current cyber security measures. We benchmark them against industry-leading standards like the Essential Eight Maturity Model and NIST.
• Present findings: After completing the assessment, we present our findings, covering the vulnerabilities and strengths to provide a clear understanding of your organisation’s cyber security posture.
• Plan for improvements: We use our findings to work with your team and build a strategic IT roadmap. We believe your organisation will see the best results when the plan aligns with your business goals, so we ensure the roadmap aligns with your strategy.
• Consistent reviews: Cyber security should not be a one-time process. At RODIN, we provide a structured and consistent framework for regular assessments to ensure that as cyber threats evolve, so does your organisation. 

Conclusion

A cyber security risk assessment evaluates and prioritises the risks to your organisation. It serves as a framework for building a roadmap and aligning cyber security initiatives with your company’s strategy and goals.

Regular risk assessments support your business in evolving with threats. Consistent CSRAs ensure your organisation remains adaptive and resilient. A proactive approach also strengthens business operations and gives stakeholders confidence in your commitment to cybersecurity.

Why choose RODIN’s Cyber Security Services?

We offer comprehensive risk assessments to Australian businesses as part of our cyber security services. Our team examines your people, processes and technology to identify vulnerabilities and build a strategy that meets your business goals.

We do more than deploy the right tools; our experts tailor solutions to suit your needs and deliver innovative solutions without breaking your budget. Visit our Cyber Security Services page for more on the RODIN difference.

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