Best Ways To Use Technology To Prevent a Cybersecurity Attack

Cybersecurity is a technological arms race. To safeguard your company from bad actors and digital threats, your technology must evolve and adapt faster than theirs. You can’t just cobble together best-in-class technology. It takes a cohesive strategy to set up a robust defense against cyberattacks. Is your business leveraging all the available tools to stand strong against cyberthreats?

Here are some technologies you should be using to defend your network, respond to threats, and minimize human error in pursuit of steadfast cybersecurity.

Firewall and network security solutions

Firewalls are network gatekeepers and a business’s first line of defense. But traditional firewalls aren’t enough to keep modern cyberthreats at bay. Today’s next-generation firewalls offer a smarter, more adaptive solution — one capable of analyzing the data going in and out of a network in real time. They can tell if something looks suspicious and stop potential threats with specificity rather than indiscriminately. Additionally, web application firewalls (WAFs) serve to filter out harmful traffic at the application level.

Alongside next-gen firewalls, network segmentation offers a way to mitigate the penetration of potential threats. As the name implies, segmentation involves walling off parts of the network to create separate, secure data exchanges. In the event of a network breach, companies can isolate and mitigate the threat before it has a chance to penetrate fully.

Virtual private networks (VPNs) enable secure remote access, which is especially critical for remote workers. VPNs encrypt data from end to end and can prevent common cyberthreats through unsecured network access points.

Threat detection and response

Advanced threat detection systems are a must-have cybersecurity technology in the modern age. They can identify suspicious activities in real time, qualify them as threats, and mobilize a rapid response to protect a company’s network at the first sign of trouble.

Security information and event management (SIEM) is one example. These systems gather information from across the network and can help trigger automated responses to potential network anomalies. Likewise, endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions ensure every network access point is secure. They stand ready to cut off a threat at the source if bad actors take advantage of a specific mode of network access.

If a threat manages to get past SIEM and EDR defenses, companies must rely on a swift response mechanism. Security orchestration, automation, and response (SOAR) platforms are the answer. If a threat slips through, they jump into action, following a well-organized plan to contain and neutralize the threat.

Together, these tools work in a “seek and destroy” capacity. They’re designed to swiftly engage and eliminate threats and reduce collateral damage associated with a cyber incident.

Authentication and access control

Mitigating cyberthreats often comes down to access control, and safety starts with prevention. Various technologies can help secure network access — by both preventing unauthorized access and limiting the risk of incidental errors.

Multifactor authentication (MFA) is the most common and effective access control solution. It involves verifying access through two or more methods, such as a password and an access code sent via SMS. Layered access makes it more difficult for hackers to access network accounts through a single compromised point. MFA falls under a broader umbrella of identity and access management (IAM) solutions, which control access across the network.

Cloud security solutions offer additional safety measures. They oversee your cloud-hosted data, limiting and monitoring access by authenticated users. For example, secure mobile device management (MDM) solutions set rules for how users can behave when accessing cloud data and make it easy to allow or revoke access at the device level.

While primarily preventing unwanted access by bad actors, endpoint security also creates accountability. If a breach does occur, it’s easier to perform a root cause analysis to understand where bad actors got in and how.

Cybersecurity requires its own tech stack

Cyberthreats will continue to evolve, and bad actors will only become craftier and more sophisticated as technology advances. Your digital defenses must evolve just as quickly. Harnessing the right technology isn’t just an option; it’s a necessity for protecting your data. Ensure you’re deploying safeguards at every level to prevent, identify, respond to, and neutralize threats before they escalate.