Companies' IT infrastructure protection strategies have often underestimated the human factor, compromising security
Although attacks carried out by cybercriminals on IT infrastructures with the aim of receiving ransoms to allow stolen data to be accessed again by their owners are becoming more frequent and sophisticated, another element must be taken into consideration when the subject of “security ” is addressed: the human factor.
“Weak or inappropriately shared passwords, configuration errors in protection devices, lack of a backup routine and sending sensitive data through insecure means are some examples that indicate the relevance of the human factor in preventing successful attacks on infrastructures. of companies”, warns Caio Sposito, country manager at Arcserve Brasil, the world's most experienced provider of immutable backup, recovery and storage solutions for unified data resilience against ransomware.
disclosure
The fight against this weakness involves preventive actions such as awareness and training, seeking to guide employees on security practices, which involves choosing robust passwords and paying attention to signs of suspicious behavior; as well as monitoring and auditing internal activities, seeking to identify irregularities in routine tasks such as access to files, downloads and changes to configurations.
Special attention must be given to the delicate process of terminating an employee from the company, a situation that is always sensitive. Treating former employees with respect, recognizing that this is a particularly stressful time, is fundamental, and it is essential that the company also protects their interests. “Having a clear policy for these occasions, including actions such as immediately revoking the former employee's access to the system and its data, is crucial to preventing intentional leaks”, comments Caio Sposito.
He recalled that last June a former employee of National Computer Systems (NCS), an IT giant based in Singapore, with operations in more than 20 cities in the Asia-Pacific region, was sentenced to almost three years in prison. The crime: having allegedly deleted 180 virtual servers after being fired, generating losses in excess of R$ 3.5 million. “He pleaded guilty and admitted to having searched on Google about how to delete virtual servers, making it clear that companies must always be aware of internal threats”, warns Caio Spósito.
