Stepping Up Your Cybersecurity with Defense in Depth (DiD)
Cybersecurity is crucial for businesses and organizations in today’s technology-driven world. As the technology advances, so do the risks associated with it. Defense in Depth (DiD) is a cybersecurity approach that involves layering multiple defensive methods to protect against potential threats.
Since no single security measure can guarantee complete protection, the combination of several layers of security is more effective. The DiD approach was first introduced by the National Security Agency (NSA) and is inspired by a military strategy of the same name. While the military uses layers of defense to buy time, in IT, the goal is to prevent incidents altogether.
By adopting the DiD approach, businesses can minimize the risks of cybersecurity threats and protect their operations, data, and reputation.
Essential Elements of DiD
Firewalls: A security system that filters out unnecessary traffic and blocks unauthorized access to your data.
Intrusion prevention and detection systems: Scans the network to detect any suspicious or malicious activity, alerts stakeholders, and blocks attacks.
Endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions: Constantly monitors endpoints to identify suspicious or malicious behavior in real-time.
Network segmentation: Divides your business’s network into smaller units, allowing you to monitor data traffic between segments and safeguard them from each other.
The principle of least privilege (PoLP): Ensures users are granted only the minimum levels of access/permissions necessary to perform their tasks.
Strong passwords: Using strong passwords and multifactor authentication (MFA) can prevent unauthorized access to your accounts and protect them from being hacked.
Patch management: Deploying new patches immediately can help prevent security gaps and make your business less vulnerable to cyberattacks.
How IT service providers help defend against threats
An IT service provider can divide DiD into three security control areas:
Administrative controls: Ensure that appropriate guidance is available and security policies are followed. This includes policies and procedures related to hiring practices, employee onboarding protocols, data processing and management procedures, information security policies, vendor risk management, third-party risk management frameworks, information risk management strategies, and more.
Technical controls: Consist of hardware or software intended to protect systems and resources. This includes firewalls, configuration management, disk/data encryption, identity authentication (IAM), vulnerability scanners, patch management, virtual private networks (VPNs), intrusion detection systems (IDS), security awareness training, and more.
Physical controls: Anything that physically limits or prevents IT system access falls under physical controls. This includes fences, keycards/badges, CCTV systems, locker rooms, and more.
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ASG Information Technologies can help
If you are struggling to develop a DiD strategy for your organization, ASG Information Technologies is here to help. We specialize in simplifying the process of enhancing your organization’s cybersecurity. Don’t hesitate to contact us to start securing your organization today.