A cybersecurity risk assessment protects your business, customers, and reputation.
As cyberattacks grow in complexity, all manufacturers must find ways to prevent attempts to corrupt their data, steal intellectual property, and disrupt their operation. By implementing cybersecurity practices now, you prevent costly threats to your business.
You might have heard this before, get a cybersecurity risk assessment, protect your data, secure your business. But what does that mean? A cybersecurity risk assessment is about understanding, controlling, and mitigating cyber risk across your business. The first step to a more secure business is to assess your risk, recognize the threats to your assets, identify your vulnerabilities, and then put a plan of action in place to address your business needs.
By performing a thorough risk assessment and accounting for all of the risks to your data, you’ll be taking a huge step toward earning your customers’ trust and protecting the sensitive data you’re entrusted with. CentraComm’s seven-step risk assessment process is closely aligned with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) SP 800-39.
7 Steps
- Threat & Vulnerability Identification
The first step in CentraComm’s cybersecurity risk assessment is to identify threats (Phishing, Malware, and Scams) and vulnerabilities in the organization’s information systems. Some of the most common cyber vulnerabilities in manufacturing including lack of patching; improper access controls; managing configurations; and exposing operational technology to the Internet. - Risk Determination
This step involves determining the risk to the organization’s operations and assets, individuals, and other organizations if identified threats exploit identified vulnerabilities. Organizations determine risk by considering the likelihood that known threats exploit known vulnerabilities and the resulting impact if such exploitations occur. - Risk Response Identification
Next, we identify alternative courses of action to respond to risk as determined during the risk assessment. Organizations can respond to risk in a variety of ways, including risk acceptance, risk avoidance, risk mitigation, risk sharing, risk transfer, or a combination. - Evaluation of Alternatives
We evaluate alternative courses of action for responding to risk. This evaluation can include mission/business impact, political, legal, social, financial, technical, and economic considerations. - Risk Response Decision
We determine the appropriate course of action for responding to risk. This decision should include some form of prioritization as some risks may be of greater concern than others. - Risk Response Implementation
We implement the course of action selected to respond to risk. Once a course of action is selected, the organization implements the associated risk response. Some risk response measures are tactical, such as applying patches to identified vulnerabilities in the IT systems, while others may be more strategic and reflect solutions that take much longer to implement. - Risk Monitoring
Lastly, the process includes developing a risk monitoring strategy that includes purpose, type, and frequency of monitoring activities. Organizations implement risk monitoring programs to verify that required risk response measures are implemented.
Why Hire a Third-Party Professional for Your Cybersecurity Risk Assessment?
A professional cybersecurity firm can conduct a quantitative risk assessment that can help you avoid massive data breaches. There are a number of reasons you may want to hire a third-party to perform your cybersecurity risk assessment. Let’s walk through them:
- Some Industries Require a Professional Cybersecurity Risk Assessment
A risk assessment is a great first step in ensuring regulatory compliance. Depending on your industry, you may be subjected to mandatory cybersecurity risk assessments from an accredited entity. In such cases, you may need to use a third-party to comply with regulations. - A Professional Assessment Can Help Justify Resources and Funding
A cybersecurity professional provides a third-party perspective, looking at the organization from a neutral position. An objective, expert opinion allows management to make informed decisions on risk management. - Cybersecurity Risk Assessments are Time Consuming
You may have in-house IT personnel to conduct the risk assessment, but a complete risk assessment will be time-consuming for your employees, and human capital is often the most expensive. Bringing in professionals will save you time and money and ensure the job is done right.
Remember, your organization might have security policies in place, but with the constantly changing cybersecurity threats, you need to stay abreast of the latest threats that might attack your organization. It’s important for businesses to understand that a cybersecurity risk assessment can help avoid penalties and regulatory fines and safeguard your valuable data.
Are you looking to identify the right cybersecurity services provider for your manufacturing business? CentraComm can be your one-stop-shop for all of your security and risk mitigation solutions. With a team of over 20 engineers, we offer a comprehensive list of products and services to small to medium-sized manufacturers, starting with a cybersecurity risk assessment, complemented by hardware support, managed services, and professional services. CentraComm is accredited and qualified to perform cybersecurity gap analysis and risk assessments for DoD compliance and Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) cybersecurity mandates. Risk Assessment and Mitigation Plans