While public sector organizations are not inherently more vulnerable than those in the private sector, they are generally more visible due to reporting requirements and, therefore, more drastically impacted by cyberattacks. This impact is measured not only in terms of recovery costs or ransom but also through fallout from system downtime, damage to reputation and credibility, and legal consequences. Those cumulative losses make recovering from an attack especially difficult.
What’s a public sector leader to do? Start with the core essentials:
Make Cybersecurity a Priority
Don’t let the flurry of tech terminology overwhelm you — or fool you into thinking cybersecurity is an IT issue or a one-and-done task. It is a whole-organization issue, one best addressed through proactive investment in resources; a cohesive strategy to protect, defend, and respond; and continuous vigilance.
Prioritize What You Protect
To improve overall cybersecurity, have IT and each operational department work together to identify and prioritize your organization’s most important technology and data assets. Use this question as a measuring stick to stack them from the top down: “How critical is this asset to our operations?” By jointly identifying your organization’s “crown jewels,” you can bridge the gap between the operational departments’ understanding of the assets most critical to operate and the IT team’s knowledge and ability to determine and deploy the protections needed to secure them.
Implement Security Measures Customized for Your Organization
It can be easy to chase after security tools, especially with so many off-the-shelf solutions available. We recommend a more strategic approach. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework comprises a set of more than 100 security control recommendations across five common IT functions. Rehmann customizes this framework for your organization’s specific risks and environment, systematically reducing cybersecurity risk through tailored-to-you policy, operations, and technology controls.
Want to delve deeper — without confusion? Rehmann public sector experts Paul Kennedy and Erinn Trask break down the next steps in further minimizing your organization’s risk and maximizing its resilience in our easy-to-understand webinar, which you can watch here. Prefer personal guidance? Contact our team at 866.799.9580.
