What is Autumn Cybersecurity Month?
Cybersecurity Month, observed every fall, is a great opportunity for businesses and individuals to review their own security measures. In today’s era of rapid digitalization, cyber attack methods are becoming more sophisticated and sophisticated every day. In particular, the damage caused by ransomware (ransom-demanding malware) and the leakage of authentication information through phishing scams continue to pose a social threat.
During this period, various awareness campaigns and seminars will be held by government agencies and security specialist companies. It is important to utilize these resources to raise security awareness throughout the organization. Rather than simply introducing new security software, taking measures that combine both raising people’s awareness and improving systems will lead to true security enhancement.
Countermeasure points that should be reviewed immediately
The first thing to review is password management and the introduction of multi-factor authentication (MFA). Reused passwords are the biggest risk factor for account takeover. Use a password manager to set strong, unique passwords, and enable MFA on all services whenever possible.
Next is software update management. It is essential to keep not only the OS, applications, and security software, but also the firmware of network devices such as routers up to date. Many cyberattacks attempt to penetrate by exploiting known vulnerabilities.
Furthermore, there is an urgent need to reconfirm the backup system. As a countermeasure against ransomware, regular backups to an offline environment separated from the network or to robust storage in the cloud are the lifeline. In preparation for the unlikely event that an incident occurs, you can minimize damage by checking recovery procedures and conducting drills (digital version of evacuation drills).