As a C-level executive, you probably don’t spend much time focusing on cybersecurity as this responsibility is handled by your IT department. Cybersecurity operations tend to run silently in the background and you only hear about them when service interruptions arise.   

In the past, this strategy may have worked just fine. But the cybersecurity landscape has changed dramatically in recent years, and your business is now at a much higher level of risk from online threats. 

According to one study, just 14 percent of companies rated their ability to mitigate vulnerabilities, cyber risks and attacks as highly affective.

With this in mind, it’s time to reassess your relationship with your cybersecurity team and look for some ways that you can help support their cause. As explained in a TechZone360 article from last week, executives today need to become more hands-on with network security issues.  

“Data security is so important that mishandling it can spell disaster for an enterprise,” explained Chris Riley, President of U.S. Operations at SSH Communications Security. “It is a potentially ruinous mistake for executives with non-technical backgrounds to simply assign responsibility for cybersecurity to the chief security officer, chief information security officer or IT team.”

So, where should you even begin?  After all, if you don’t have a technical background you may find it difficult to communicate with your cybersecurity staff.

Our advice is to avoid  going too far into the weeds with cybersecurity issues, and instead focus on the areas that you can control — namely resource management.

Here are some things that your network security team may desperately need, but can’t easily ask for:

1. Greater cooperation: A team is only as strong as its weakest link. Your IT team could do everything right, and yet the security of the entire business could be compromised by someone foolishly opening a ransomware attachment or clicking on a harmful link.

As Riley explained, you can become a culture change agent. Create a strong culture of cybersecurity in your company, and make it a priority to ensure that all team members  are aware of how to avoid online threats.Consider offering cybersecurity training to get everyone up to speed quickly.  

2. Trouble ticket assistance: In small IT environments, employees often have to wear multiple hats. Therefore, security specialists occasionally have to respond to trouble tickets when end users lose access to network services. This can disrupt cybersecurity research and leave the business vulnerable.  

If you’re experiencing a hiring freeze, then you’ll want to consider partnering with a third party managed services provider offering around-the-clock help desk support. 

3. Advanced anomaly detection: To effectively combat cybercrime, cybersecurity teams need access to advanced anomaly detection and behavior analytics solutions. It’s critical to be able to recognize threats that deviate from normal behavior patterns. Again, this  can be easily — and cost effectively — obtained from a managed services provider. 

A new breed of hacktrepeneurs has awoken and they have little to fear and everything to gain by infecting as many companies as possible and extorting money from them. Apex Technology Services stands ready to protect your company regardless of whether it’s located in New York City; White Plains, New York; Connecticut; Australia; Europe; or anywhere else. Our full suite of cybersecurity and IT support services is at your disposal, enabling you to spend less time worrying about and more time growing your business.

To ensure your security, consider one of our most popular services — Auditing & Documentation — which pinpoints vulnerabilities in your infrastructure, process flow and internal security procedures.