What is Cyber Risk?
Cyber risk is the potential loss an organization can suffer from a cyber attack, data breach or other security incident. It can include financial costs, regulatory fines, operational disruption and loss of brand reputation. Defining and measuring cyber risk is critical for maintaining an acceptable level of risk to your organization while still meeting business objectives. This includes identifying your cyber risk tolerance or threshold and setting the required level of security to meet it.
The first step to defining cyber risk is conducting a risk assessment. This will help you identify vulnerabilities in your cyber defenses and prioritize them for remediation. Once you’ve identified your cyber risks, it is important to build a risk response strategy that can be used across the entire organization.
The next step to assessing your cyber security environment is to map out all of the areas of your network and systems that are vulnerable to a potential cyber attack. This is often called the “attack surface.” Then, you will be able to see all of the potential vulnerabilities that could occur within your organization, which will help you identify the most critical areas for cyber risk mitigation.
What is Cyber Risk? Definition & Examples
The most obvious cyber risk is the risk of a malicious internal cyberattack. This can happen through the unauthorized use of devices or by a disgruntled employee who wishes to do harm to your organization. Hackers, also known as attackers or cybercriminals, are constantly looking for ways to access networks. They search for vulnerabilities and try to gain control of them through various tactics, such as malware, phishing or social engineering.
Typically, hackers are seeking to access sensitive information. This can include customer data, trade secrets and other information that is confidential or regulated. Malware and phishing attacks are also common, while ransomware can block access to your system until you pay a fee for it to be removed. Another common type of attack is a denial-of-service (DoS) attack, which overwhelms your network and prevents you from running your operations.
Creating a risk-based vulnerability management program is the most effective way to reduce cyber risk. This involves implementing a comprehensive vulnerability scanning tool that continuously identifies vulnerabilities throughout your network and applications. Then, you can prioritize the most critical vulnerabilities for remediation and focus your resources on addressing them in a timely manner.
Incorporating new protective technologies is also a key component of your cyber risk management. For example, modern antivirus software uses a variety of techniques to help it detect malware and protect your network from attacks. This can include behavior analysis, machine learning and other technologies that have the potential to catch previously unidentified threats.
Developing and maintaining an effective cybersecurity risk management program requires budget, time and human resources. Moreover, it needs to be aligned with your business goals and strategies. By implementing the right cybersecurity tools and processes, you can reduce the amount of time and money required to maintain your security posture.
