At the moment, information security risks pose a great threat to the normal activities of many enterprises and institutions. In our age of information technology, obtaining any data is practically not difficult. On the one hand, this, of course, brings many positive aspects, but it becomes a problem for the face and brand of many companies.
The protection of information in enterprises is now becoming almost a priority. Experts believe that only by developing a certain conscious sequence of actions can this goal be achieved. In this case, it is possible to be guided only by reliable facts and use advanced analytical methods. A certain contribution is made by the development of intuition and the experience of the specialist responsible for this unit at the enterprise.
This material will tell about risk management of information security of an economic entity.
What types of possible threats exist in the information environment?
There can be many types of threats. An analysis of the information security risks of an enterprise begins with consideration of all potential threats. This is necessary in order to determine the verification methods in case of occurrence of these unforeseen situations, as well as to create an appropriate protection system. Information security risks are divided into certain categories depending on various classification features. They are of the following types:
- physical sources;
- inappropriate use of the computer network and the World Wide Web;
- sealed leakage;
- leakage by technical means;
- unauthorized intrusion;
- attack on information assets;
- violation of the integrity of data modification;
- emergencies;
- legal violations.
What is included in the concept of "physical threats to information security"?
The types of information security risks are determined depending on the sources of their occurrence, the method of implementation of the illegal intrusion and purpose. The simplest technically, but still requiring professional performance, are physical threats. They constitute unauthorized access to sealed sources. That is, this process is in fact an ordinary theft. Information can be obtained personally, with your own hands, simply by invading the institution, offices, archives to gain access to technical equipment, documentation and other storage media.
The theft may not even lie in the data itself, but in the place of their storage, that is, directly to the computer equipment itself. In order to disrupt the normal activities of the organization, attackers can simply ensure a malfunction in the storage media or technical equipment.
The purpose of a physical intrusion may also be to gain access to a system on which information security depends. An attacker could modify the options of a network responsible for information security in order to further facilitate the implementation of illegal methods.
The possibility of a physical threat can also be provided by members of various groups that have access to classified information that does not have publicity. Their goal is valuable documentation.Such individuals are called insiders.
The activity of external attackers can be directed at the same object.
How can enterprise employees themselves cause threats?
Information security risks often arise due to inappropriate use by employees of the Internet and the internal computer system. Attackers play beautifully on the inexperience, carelessness and lack of education of some people regarding information security. In order to exclude this option of stealing confidential data, the leadership of many organizations has a special policy among their staff. Its purpose is to educate people on the rules of behavior and use of networks. This is a fairly common practice, since threats arising in this way are quite common. The program includes the following points in the program for acquiring information security skills:
- overcoming the inefficient use of audit tools;
- reducing the degree to which people use special tools for data processing;
- reduced use of resources and assets;
- accustoming to gaining access to network facilities only by established methods;
- allocation of zones of influence and designation of the territory of responsibility.
When each employee understands that the fate of the institution depends on the responsible execution of the tasks assigned to him, he tries to adhere to all the rules. Before people it is necessary to set specific tasks and justify the results obtained.
How are privacy terms violated?
Risks and threats to information security are largely associated with the illegal receipt of information that should not be accessible to unauthorized persons. The first and most common leak channel is all kinds of communication methods. At a time when, it would seem, personal correspondence is available only to two parties, interested parties intercept it. Although intelligent people understand that transmitting something extremely important and secret is necessary in other ways.
Since now a lot of information is stored on portable media, attackers are actively mastering the interception of information through this type of technology. Listening to communication channels is very popular, only now all the efforts of technical geniuses are aimed at breaking the protective barriers of smartphones.
Confidential information may be inadvertently disclosed by employees of the organization. They can not directly give out all “appearances and passwords,” but only lead the attacker to the right path. For example, people, without knowing it, give information about the place of storage of important documentation.
Only subordinates are not always vulnerable. Contractors can also provide confidential information during partnerships.
How is information security violated by technical means of influence?
Ensuring information security is largely due to the use of reliable technical means of protection. If the support system is efficient and effective even in the equipment itself, then this is already half the success.
In general, information leakage is thus ensured by controlling various signals. Such methods include the creation of specialized sources of radio emission or signals. The latter can be electrical, acoustic or vibrational.
Quite often, optical devices are used that allow you to read information from displays and monitors.
A variety of devices provides a wide range of methods for the introduction and extraction of information by attackers. In addition to the above methods, there are also television, photographic and visual reconnaissance.
Due to such wide possibilities, information security audit primarily includes verification and analysis of the operation of technical means to protect confidential data.
What is considered unauthorized access to company information?
Information security risk management is impossible without preventing threats of unauthorized access.
One of the most prominent representatives of this method of hacking someone else's security system is the assignment of a user ID. This method is called "Masquerade." Unauthorized access in this case consists in the use of authentication data. That is, the intruder’s goal is to obtain a password or any other identifier.
Attackers can have an impact from within the object itself or from the outside. They can obtain the necessary information from sources such as an audit trail or audit tools.
Often, the attacker tries to apply the implementation policy and use completely legal methods at first glance.
Unauthorized access applies to the following sources of information:
- Website and external hosts
- enterprise wireless network;
- backup copies of data.
There are countless ways and methods of unauthorized access. Attackers look for miscalculations and gaps in the configuration and architecture of the software. They receive data by modifying software. To neutralize and reduce vigilance, intruders launch malware and logic bombs.
What are the legal threats to the information security of the company?
Information security risk management works in various directions, because its main goal is to provide comprehensive and holistic protection of the enterprise from extraneous intrusion.
No less important than the technical area is legal. Thus, which, it would seem, on the contrary, should defend interests, it turns out to obtain very useful information.
Legal infringements may relate to property rights, copyrights, and patent rights. Illegal use of software, including import and export, also falls into this category. It is only possible to violate legal requirements without observing the terms of the contract or the legislative framework as a whole.
How to set information security goals?
Ensuring information security begins with establishing the area of protection. It is necessary to clearly define what needs to be protected and from whom. For this, a portrait of a potential criminal is determined, as well as possible methods of hacking and implementation. In order to set goals, first of all, you need to talk with the leadership. It will tell you the priority areas of protection.
From this moment, an information security audit begins. It allows you to determine in what proportion it is necessary to apply technological and business methods. The result of this process is the final list of activities, which consolidates the goals of the unit to provide protection against unauthorized intrusions. The audit procedure is aimed at identifying critical points and weaknesses in the system that interfere with the normal operation and development of the enterprise.
After setting goals, a mechanism is developed for their implementation. Instruments are formed to control and minimize risks.
What role do assets play in risk analysis?
The risks of information security of an organization directly affect the assets of an enterprise. After all, the goal of attackers is to obtain valuable information. Its loss or disclosure will inevitably lead to losses. Damage caused by an unauthorized intrusion may have a direct impact, or may only indirectly.That is, illegal actions in relation to the organization can lead to a complete loss of control over the business.
The amount of damage is estimated according to the assets available to the organization. Affected are all resources that contribute in any way to the achievement of management objectives. Under the assets of the enterprise refers to all tangible and intangible assets that bring and help to generate income.
Assets are of several types:
- material;
- human
- informational;
- financial;
- processes
- brand and authority.
The latter type of asset suffers the most from unauthorized intrusions. This is due to the fact that any real information security risks affect the image. Problems with this area automatically reduce respect and trust in such an enterprise, since no one wants its confidential information to be made public. Each self-respecting organization takes care of protecting its own information resources.
Various factors influence how much and what assets will suffer. They are divided into external and internal. Their complex impact, as a rule, applies simultaneously to several groups of valuable resources.
The entire business of the enterprise is built on assets. They are present to some extent in the activities of any institution. Just for some, some groups are more important, and less others. Depending on what type of assets the attackers managed to influence, the result, i.e. the damage caused, depends.
An assessment of information security risks makes it possible to clearly identify the main assets, and if they were affected, then this is fraught with irreparable losses for the enterprise. The attention should be paid to these groups of valuable resources by the management itself, since their safety is in the sphere of interests of the owners.
The priority area for the information security unit is auxiliary assets. A special person is responsible for their protection. Risks against them are not critical and only affect the management system.
What are the factors of information security?
Calculation of information security risks includes the construction of a specialized model. It represents nodes that are connected to each other by functional connections. Nodes - these are the very assets. The model uses the following valuable resources:
- people;
- strategy;
- technology;
- processes.
The ribs that bind them are the same risk factors. In order to identify possible threats, it is best to contact the department or specialist who works with these assets directly. Any potential risk factor may be a prerequisite for the formation of a problem. The model identifies the main threats that may arise.
Regarding the staff, the problem is the low educational level, lack of staff, lack of motivation.
Process risks include environmental variability, poor automation of production, and fuzzy separation of duties.
Technologies may suffer from out-of-date software, lack of control over users. The cause may also be problems with a heterogeneous information technology landscape.
The advantage of this model is that the threshold values of information security risks are not clearly established, since the problem is viewed from different angles.
What is an information security audit?
An important procedure in the field of information security of an enterprise is audit. It is a check of the current state of the system of protection against unauthorized intrusions. The audit process determines the degree of compliance with established requirements.Its implementation is mandatory for some types of institutions, for the rest it is advisory in nature. The examination is carried out in relation to the documentation of the accounting and tax departments, technical means and financial and economic parts.
An audit is necessary in order to understand the level of security, and in case of inconsistency of the optimization to normal. This procedure also allows you to evaluate the appropriateness of financial investments in information security. Ultimately, the expert will give recommendations on the rate of financial spending in order to obtain maximum efficiency. Auditing allows you to adjust controls.
Examination regarding information security is divided into several stages:
- Setting goals and ways to achieve them.
- Analysis of the information needed to reach a verdict.
- Processing collected data.
- Expert opinion and recommendations.
Ultimately, the specialist will issue his decision. The recommendations of the commission are most often aimed at changing configurations of hardware, as well as servers. Often a problematic company is offered to choose a different method of ensuring security. It is possible that a set of protective measures will be appointed by experts for additional reinforcement.
The work after obtaining the audit results is aimed at informing the team about the problems. If necessary, then it is worthwhile to conduct additional training in order to increase the education of employees regarding the protection of information resources of the enterprise.