Head in the Clouds: Aussie Businesses Experiencing Rise in Serious Data Breaches

From 22 February 2018, it became a requirement for certain data breaches, known as “eligible data breaches”, to be notified to the Australian Privacy Commissioner and affected individuals. Previously, it was not mandatory to supply notification of data breaches. A data breach occurs when personal information is accessed, revealed without authorization, destroyed, altered, or lost. Given that data breaches have recently become more frequent due to poor systems and processes, this change was made in the hope and expectation that companies would be significantly more alert and cautious about their data management and breach practices.

Last year, almost three in four Australian organizations experienced cyber-attacks, with 89% of companies reporting an increase in attacks (from 2 – 2.3 breaches on average, per year) as more employees worked from home. These breaches were not trivial – 8 in 10 were considered concerning enough to be either reported to their regulators, or required the assistance of an incident response team. This highlights the very real security risks that Australian businesses are up against, as more and more people gain momentum working in the digital world. Around 60% of chief information security officers now expect a major material breach in the next coming year.

 

Why are AUST/NZ organizations still being hacked?

The main reason that companies are still being targeted by data breaches through cyber-attacks, is frankly because they are easy targets. Some organizations reckon that they are totally safe because their systems and sensitive data are “protected and managed in my cloud service provider”. But how can you really be certain that your cloud is fully securing and protecting your system? In short, you can’t. Many businesses use online cloud storage – a cheap way to store a massive amount of data on off-site computers. Keeping your data on a cloud-based system seems like the obvious thing to do, right? Not quite.

Cloud storage systems come with numerous potential security risks. One danger is the risk to data privacy as it simply isn’t possible to know exactly how impenetrable the system is. If you can’t be certain that no one else can access your files, then you may be relinquishing privacy controls that are essential to keeping your data private. Also, you’ll be using a shared server if you use a cloud storage system, because a providers server space is shared between different customers, if and when needed. This puts your data at risk if another person on the same server uploads malicious information. If this does happen, the access to your data will be directly impacted. You’ll need to rely on the cloud service provider to fix any issues and who knows how long that could take. The longer your data sits unprotected, the more at-risk it becomes.

 

Who owns your data? You own the data you create, but the cloud service provider has ultimate control over it.

An information security audit for businesses both large and small, will help to pin -point any security breaches in the current system and gives access to tools to repair them, such as creating a retention/destruction schedule for confidential information. Network security audits are extremely important because they help identify the biggest risks in your current system, allowing you to make changes that will protect you, your company and customers data from those risks. It is vital for the integrity of your business to conduct security testing by external cyber security consultants using fully accredited software.

Many companies say that conducting a security audit on their organizations cyber security system is simply not a priority and that they have other key revenue growth areas they feel are more important to invest in. What happens if your company gets hacked tomorrow? To protect the confidential information of your company and customers against data breach threats, you must follow preventative steps to identify and minimize risks.

At Cybernetic Global Intelligence, when we hear from C-level management within a company and ask them about their cyber security protocols implemented within their business, some admit that they have no budget for cyber security, yet are willing to pay huge ransoms to get their stolen data back. And of course, there is no guarantee that they won’t be hit by another malicious attack in the future. Cyber security should start at the board level as a priority and organizations who fail to account for this will be continually compromised.

Please connect with our Cyber Security Service Provider Cybernetic Global Intelligence expert team to find out how you can secure your network from unauthorized access and keep your confidential data safe.

We are a leading Aussie cybersecurity firm with years of experience in providing outstanding cybersecurity services. You can call 1300 292 376, or send an email anytime to contact@cybernetic-gi.com for assistance.

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