As of now, numerous businesses use computing technology to streamline their operations. And most probably, you’re one of them. Honestly, information technology has made business processes easy and manageable. It’s hard to imagine how the workplace would be without IT. But despite the benefits you reap, it has its fair share of risks. Thus, you need to know how to conduct an efficient IT risk assessment for your business. Here are the steps to follow:
First and foremost, you need to know what business property you should classify as IT assets. Here are some of the most common ones:
Then, for each of these assets, note the following related information:
This information serves as the background and foundation for your risk assessment. By making a comprehensive list, you know the exact components to evaluate.
You can look at threats as anything that could physically damage the hardware components of your IT system or maliciously tweak the functionality of your software. Here are some of the most notorious threats to IT systems:
Insider threats are even more prevalent given the work-at-home system that many businesses have shifted to. You may not know the integrity of the remote worker you just hired. Facts have it that some cybercriminals pose as candidates for advertised jobs. Once they get access to the company portals, they spend their good time stealing whatever they want to.
Vulnerabilities are loopholes within your IT system that could make it easy for highlighted threats to occur. Take, for instance, fire. Having an office with wooden framing and cladding increases the risk of fire.
For floods, having your office in the basement is a vulnerability. And for cyber threats, operating without the latest antivirus software is a weak point. After identifying such loopholes, you can see how best to improve your business systems, and thus, avoid falling victim to IT threats.
It’s not enough to have a list of your assets, threats, and vulnerabilities. Risk assessment also involves evaluating the impact of the threats on the business.
For instance, assume your office gets flooded and all your IT devices get submerged. You ought to estimate the financial loss you’ll suffer after such an incident. And in addition to that, you should calculate the amount of money you’ll need to resume normal operations.
And do note that impacts aren’t necessarily financial. If a hacker poses as you and uses your identity to make false business communication, you may lose integrity. Your customers may lose confidence in you and find solace in your competitors.
Further, classify the impacts as low, medium, or high. This way, you’ll know what level of effort should be put in place to help avert the risks.
IT risk assessment is never complete without recommending possible solutions. After analyzing the threats and vulnerabilities and evaluating their potential impact, make a point of stating the series of actions you intend to take to help mitigate the risks. Some of the measures may include:
In Conclusion
You must conduct an IT risk assessment for your enterprise. The slightest breach of security is enough to bring your operations to a standstill. And as you know, cybersecurity attacks are some of the most prevalent IT risks. Therefore, you may want to hire cybersecurity firms to help protect your IT assets against damage or theft by malicious outsiders or insiders.
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