Between July and December 2022, the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) received 350 reports of malicious attacks, an increase of 41% from the previous six months. As cyber security threats become more sophisticated, so must your approach to preventing them.
Good cyber security is no longer about simply keeping threat actors out; you need services tailored to your company’s unique needs and a strategy to proactively respond to new threats before they deal significant damage. While traditional cyber security measures like firewalls and multi-factor authentication effectively mitigate some threats, they are not enough to holistically protect your organisation against modern attacks, and a thorough understanding of architecture is required.
Understanding your security architecture
Security architecture refers to the design and structure of a system that integrates security policies, procedures, and technology to protect your data’s integrity, confidentiality, and availability.
Whilst penetration testing or governance-driven reviews are often put forward, it’s been our experience that neither is fit for purpose. We’ve endeavoured to drive a middle ground that ensures an appropriate, fit-for-purpose activity.
To customise an approach that aligns with your company’s specific requirements, it’s essential for us to grasp your current situation, security measures, and the vulnerabilities that pose the greatest risk to your business. At Mercury, we take a ‘top-down’ approach to building your security architecture. We start with a broader perspective and work down to the specific details to ensure the architecture is fit for purpose and aligns with your organisational goals and requirements.
We will ask questions like:
- What are your business goals?
- How does your team operate?
- What do your customers need from you?
Addressing evolving threats with adaptive strategies
Cyber security threats have continued evolving in sophistication, and the challenge for many businesses today is staying abreast of the global threat environment. When your organisation has people with the resources and time to manage changes, you can implement proactive defence strategies that anticipate potential risks rather than merely reacting to them, leading to informed and strategic decision-making around your cyber security posture.
Threat modeling is one tactic for understanding and anticipating the impacts of an attack. It simulates potential attack scenarios and possible vulnerabilities. We use threat modeling to design security protocols and measures tailored to your company’s needs. It’s not just about identifying threats but also understanding how they might exploit your systems so we can mitigate those risks before they become a problem.
Architecture reviews analyse your system designs to ensure they meet security best practices and compliance requirements relevant to your organisation. In analysing your current systems, we can find and address weaknesses to ensure you get maximum protection from your cyber security controls.
Configuration reviews focus on maintaining the integrity and security of your system by ensuring that all components are properly set up. During this process, we look for weak points in your hardware, software and networks that could expose your business to vulnerabilities or unauthorised access.
Embedding cyber resilience with incident response
You need to think of cyber threats as inevitable events that could impact your business anytime. Cyber resilience is your company’s ability to continue operating effectively in the face of cyber attacks or other security incidents. It’s not just about preventing attacks but also about handling them to minimise impact and return to normal business operations.
If you are to truly strengthen your business against such threats, you need a clear, detailed plan for responding and recovering from an attack. Incident response should detail protocols that specific people will complete to handle the attack and minimise damage to the business. By assigning specific roles and responsibilities to trained individuals or teams, you can manage every aspect of an incident properly, reducing the potential for further complications or delays.
For example, let’s say you experience a ransomware attack. You should have already prepared for this incident with a robust data backup strategy. If threat actors hold your data for ransom, the necessary people within the business can access your backups so that you experience minimal disruptions to your operations and reduce your chances of data loss.
Conclusion
As cyber security threats become more complex, your business needs a proactive strategy to reduce the impacts of an attack. True cyber resilience requires more than prevention; your company needs a robust plan that aligns with your goals and unique needs. This starts with analysing your security architecture, including the technology, processes and people involved. From there, we can build a multi-faceted approach that anticipates evolving threats, monitors your systems and prepares your business for an attack.
Why choose Mercury’s Architecture Services?
Our Architecture Services comprehensively secure your company’s digital environment. Our dedicated experts will work closely with you to evaluate, design and implement a customised, integrated security strategy that protects your critical assets, fosters a culture of cyber resilience, combats evolving threats and meets your strategic objectives.
When you choose Mercury, you get more than a service. You get a partner committed to meticulous planning, clear communication, and risk reduction. Please visit our Architecture Services page for more information on how we can secure your business.
