Organisations cannot rely on anti-virus and anti-spam solutions to secure their information and protect them from suffering great financial loss.
So says Heino Gevers, security specialist at Mimecast, who notes that, as phishing and malware attacks evolve and become more difficult to detect and quarantine, organisations must take a proactive approach towards protecting their IP and users against such attacks.
"Organisations need to adopt the services of super gateways, which can support a 'circle of trust' methodology," he says.
"These alliances between the super gateways allow organisations that utilise the services of such service providers to communicate through an encrypted channel at all times and be classified as a safe and trusted sender. Anyone else outside of this network that communicates with a user within the super gateway network will have to pass vigorous security checks and controls before their communication will be permitted into the secure super gateway network," he notes.
According to Gevers, the biggest challenge for organisations is finding the right resources, with the necessary set of skills to assist them with driving awareness around the latest threats within the business and making sure the required contingency plans are in place to ensure they are not caught off guard.
He says the primary threats organisations face include targeted cyber attacks, data breaches via social media and mobile devices. Organisations need to associate themselves with creditable service providers that can offer scalability and have already established relationships with other super gateways across the globe, he continues.
"The best way for organisations to establish if their service provider is a credible one is by asking them a series of questions and for proof of which type of alliances they are a part of. What certifications have they obtained? How many awards has their technology and support desk won? Who are their reference customers relevant to their industry and business size?"
Gevers believes technology can evolve at the same pace as cyber crime, but says the challenge comes when organisations have to keep up with the necessary security measures that are required to detect or prevent cyber attacks.
"Businesses need to ensure they employ or consult local ICT resources with the necessary knowledge and accreditation on how to combat cyber crime through implementing the right technologies for their type of industry and assisting with developing awareness campaigns," he concludes.
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