The term ‘cyber defense’ refers to the ability to prevent cyber attacks from infecting a computer system or device. It involves taking active steps to anticipate adversarial cyber actions and to counter intrusions. All cyber defense strategies and tactics have a common goal, which is to prevent, disrupt and respond to cyber threats. 

Why is cyber defense necessary?

Taking a proactive approach to cyber security will enable you to avoid damaging and disruptive cyber attacks. Cyber attacks may not only tax your IT resources, they can also be taxing financially, lead to a tarnished brand image, and result in legal consequences. 

Organizations that reach a certain threshold with their cyber defense will be able to conduct business-as-usual while facing persistent threats and sophisticated attacks. The continued business functionality will strengthen customer trust and improve shareholder value. Strong cyber defense tactics, when properly conveyed to others, can even open up new revenue opportunities for an organization. 

 For every organization these days, cyber defense is a must.  

How can organizations effectively employ cyber defense tactics?

• Protect your organization from insider threats. For the average organization, 23% of cyber incidents emerge from malicious insiders. Be sure that your employees understand legal mandates pertaining to their roles, that they’re aware of security best practices, that they’re not sending confidential data to unsecured locations, and that no one, especially the C-suite, disregards security policies in exchange for greater speed and agility.
• Obtain threat intelligence tools and share threat intelligence information with competitors or adjacent organizations. Threat intelligence can help you see which threats pose the greatest risk to your infrastructure, enabling you to devise a plan to protect your resources. Sharing the information strengthens everyone’s capacities to prevent cyber attacks.
• Shop for threat defense products. Active cyber defense tools provide enterprises with improved agility when it comes to cyber threats. These tools can provide early warning alerts and help administrators determine how to stop a cyber attack that is in progress. To engage in comparative shopping for threat defense products, check out this Buyers Guide to Cyber Security. 

The cyber defense tactics that your organization pursues will depend on your industry, your product, your third-party relationships and more. 

How can leaders take a stance on cyber defense? 

Invest in operational speed: 

• Leaders prioritize moving fast when it comes to breach detection and breach response. You want to be able to evaluate the number of systems impacted by an attack, the duration of the incident, and where the organization could improve in terms of isolating cyber incidents.
• Ensure that your organization is using the latest technologies that can rapidly identify threats, and alert you in real-time. Accenture recommends the deployment of Next-Generation firewalls for fewer successful attacks.To reduce the impact of breaches, deploy artificial intelligence. For cost-reduction and quality security, employ SOAR. 

Learn from your initiatives:

• Data shows that among organizations that are good at scaling, they’re also four times better than average at identifying and defending against cyber security attacks. This suggests that certain mentalities and ways of thinking can assist organizations in expanding and enhancing their cyber defense. 

Promote collaboration:

• Research indicates that organizations with better collaboration capabilities are two times better than average at defending against attacks, protecting their attack surfaces, and ensuring that regulatory requirements are met. 

What kinds of roles are involved in cyber defense? 

In a given organization, a variety of individuals may be involved in cyber defense initiatives. Below, we’ll briefly go through the personas commonly involved.

CISOs or Chief Information Security Officers typically develop and implement roadmaps related to security infrastructure growth. CISOs may examine existing cyber security programs and then determine and execute on closing systemic gaps.

Security architects frequently examine existing cyber security measures and offer recommendations regarding how to reset priorities and where to implement new tools. A security architect might dive deep into the code that developers use, the hardware that their company relies on or how specific user groups interact with endpoints.

Forensics experts enter the picture when cyber security programs prove faulty. They’re able to analyze what went wrong (where the hackers got in) and how to fix the issue. Cyber forensics experts can be critical in improving a business’s future prospects.

Where can CxOs learn more about cyber defense? 

Cyber defense is regularly discussed in-depth on CyberTalk.org. Please check the site regularly for high-level insights and perspectives on the topic.