Written by: Alex Hubbard
Cybersecurity is no longer a luxury item but a necessity – regardless of your organization’s size, data is the lifeblood of all organizations. Threats can range from a traditional business email compromise (BEC) to sophisticated hacking and social engineering attempts. They all share one thing in common: They aim to destroy the integrity and security of your data. You’ll never stop 100% of the dangers or attacks against an organization, but there are steps that you can take to mitigate their impact. Leveraging a cybersecurity framework is a significant first step to take. Frameworks are essential to ensuring your organization is doing the right things regarding cybersecurity. They’re industry-recognized guidelines that determine what you should do to keep your data secure.
What Are Cybersecurity Frameworks?
Cybersecurity frameworks are structured guidelines that include best practices organizations can follow to secure digital assets and mitigate the risk of cyber threats. Frameworks provide a systematic approach to managing cybersecurity risks, ensuring that security measures are comprehensive and well-coordinated. A framework can be simple to implement, or it can be very complex. It all depends on which one(s) your organization chooses.
What Frameworks Are Out There?
Two of the most prevalent cybersecurity frameworks we, as CISOs, see with our clients are the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework and the Center for Internet Security’s (CIS) control framework. These are well-rounded frameworks organizations can adopt to enhance their cybersecurity posture.
The NIST Cybersecurity Framework, provides a comprehensive approach to managing and reducing cybersecurity risk. It consists of five core functions: identify, protect, detect, respond, and recover, offering a structured methodology for organizations to assess, mitigate, and recover from cyber threats.
The CIS Control Framework offers a prioritized set of security best practices that organizations can implement to defend against the most common and damaging cyberattacks. Both frameworks provide several benefits, including improved cybersecurity resilience, enhanced threat detection and response capabilities, regulatory compliance alignment, and a common language for discussing cybersecurity matters. These frameworks can help organizations proactively address cyber threats and safeguard their data.
In addition to the frameworks mentioned above, there are several others out in the world of cybersecurity, including ISO/IEC27001, NIST 800-53, PCI DSS, National Cyber Security Center (NSCS) Cyber Essentials, NIST Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC), and FedRAMP. You can implement more than one framework within your organization. It largely depends on your industry and any regulatory bodies you report to.
If your organization is prepared to advance its cybersecurity efforts, Wolf’s vCISO team can assist your organization. Our vCISOs can assess your current environment and assist you in selecting the proper framework to enhance the maturity of your cybersecurity program – reach out today.
