Securing Your Business Against Evolving Cyber Threats

By Tom Digan, Cyber Resilience Director, Dell Technologies Ireland

Whether it’s creating new job opportunities, driving innovation, or bringing competition to the marketplace, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the lifeline of thriving economies.

A 2021 report on SMEs from the Department of Enterprise outlined that the sector is vital for the labour market in Ireland: 99.8% of all enterprises in Ireland stand within the SME bracket and generate more than 70% of all jobs in the non-financial business economy. In 2020 these enterprises generated 41.9% of total turnover in the business economy and played a key role in adding value to a range of sectors in the domestic economy.

Despite being a formidable contributor and cornerstone of growth and progress to the Irish economy, SMEs are often the most vulnerable when it comes to cyber security and data protection. While protecting business data has become a critical priority for organisations of every size, the task has become increasingly complex and costly, not to mention time-consuming.

A growing IT challenge

The economic cost of cybercrime to the Irish digital economy continues to rise year-on-year. Last year, for example, the National Cyber Security Centre issued an alert to SMEs about the increased threat of ransomware attacks as cybercrime groups divert their focus to smaller businesses.

Attacks against major corporations grab front-page headlines, but, in reality, businesses of all sizes are vulnerable. SMEs, lacking the extensive resources and specialist skills of large corporations, are particularly at risk. On average, SMEs have limited IT staff personnel and with a lean team, time is precious. And as the challenges of data protection continue to mount, the pressure for IT teams to reduce cost and to “do more with less” continues to grow.

While there is no silver bullet for cyber security and no business is impenetrable, there are some very practical steps that SMEs can take to make their business more resilient.

Educate and motivate users

According to a study conducted by Gartner, by 2025, human failure will be responsible for over half of significant cyber incidents, including social attacks, errors and misuse. Consider how employees are accessing data and which parts of your business contain data that is the most valuable.

Hybrid working has become a norm for many employees in Irish SMEs and beyond. This new work environment provides significant challenges for enterprises, with more points of entry available for potential cyber criminals. 70% of IT decision makers now recognize that their organisation has increased exposure to data loss from cyber threats with the growth of employees working from home.

To address these changes, it is critical to consistently educate employees on cybersecurity issues and best practices, as they are typically the weakest link in the security chain! Educate them often and drive accountability to make sure all your data stays safe.

Focus on the data

We live in a data-driven world. Data has become the lifeblood of Irish SMEs and the fuel that enables them to scale operations quickly in response to demand.

The “infrastructure” that stores these vast networks of data is made up of storage and hyper-converged systems, servers, networking and data protection that may be physically distributed or delivered as a service but regardless of how IT infrastructure is consumed, it must be trusted and protected.

We get caught up talking about protecting devices, but the device is just the container. Attackers care about what is in the container, not the container itself. The conversation should be about how to protect data, not devices. It is critical to regularly back-up data and utilise data-centric encryption, which is the preferred method for encrypting data as it moves across devices and the network.

Strengthen cyber resiliency

Thirdly, with cyber-attacks globally occurring every 11 seconds, it’s crucial that SMEs focus on using new technologies to mitigate against this risk. While there is a growing recognition among IT decision makers at Irish businesses of the importance of cyber resilience, less than a third have a dedicated cyber response strategy in response to an attack. Investment in infrastructure, resources and strategies to withstand and recover from a cyber-attack will be crucial for the long-term health of SMEs.

According to the 2022 Dell Global Data Protection Index (GDPI) survey, 91% of organisations are either aware of or planning to deploy a Zero Trust architecture – a cyber security model that shifts how organisations approach security from relying solely on perimeter defences to a proactive strategy that only allows known, authorized traffic across system boundaries and data pipelines.

With embedded security features designed into the hardware, firmware and security control points, this holistic approach helps organizations achieve Zero Trust architectures to strengthen cyber resiliency by offering integrated data protection software, systems and services to help ensure data and applications are protected and resilient wherever they live.

At Dell Technologies Ireland, we understand the importance of cyber resilience and the protection of critical data at every stage of the business lifecycle. Through Managed Detection and Response services, we’re provide fully managed, end-to-end, 24×7 solution that monitors, detects, investigates, and responds to threats across an organization’s entire IT environment.

Our support for organisations, large and small, on their digital transformation journey sets them on the path to success in a digital era.

Flexible and scalable growth

Finally, it’s important to note that SMEs often find themselves stuck between technology solutions for smaller business and enterprise business. The good news is they can use both. As long as the solution produces results for their business, it doesn’t matter which side the business leans toward.

And against the backdrop of the challenges SMEs in Ireland face, from financing and fulfilling orders, to managing employees and meeting regulations, to just keeping the lights on, having flexibility in technology solutions, a successful cyber recovery strategy, and an expert cyber security partner who can deliver, is critical.

Dell Technologies Forum

That is why the Dell Technologies Forum, taking place on Tuesday, 26th September 2023 in The Connection Centre Dublin, will put a spotlight on the steps that Irish businesses can take to enhance the cyber resiliency of their organisation.

Through insightful breakout sessions on ‘Cyber kill chains: Modelling how to combat security threats at the endpoint’, ‘Zero Trust: Discover the benefits that make it a priority’ for business leaders to gain knowledge on tools and solutions to safeguard their businesses. In a rapidly evolving digital realm, fortifying cyber resilience remains paramount, ensuring future growth, innovation, and security.

For more information and to register for Dell Technologies Forum 2023, click here.