How to Ensure Your Cybersecurity is Cost-Effective

According to recently released statistics, the average cost of a data breach in 2020 was $3.86 million. That means that the cost of high-quality cybersecurity is often worth it compared to the massive cost of suffering a cyberattack or a data breach.

But how do you ensure that the cybersecurity that you’re investing in is cost-effective for your organization? After all, there’s no use in spending if it’s going to be ineffective for your specific needs. Here we take a look at several ways you can ensure your cybersecurity is cost-effective.

Don’t assume that not spending is cost-effective

The first thing to say here is that many businesses get hung up on the idea of spending on defense measures that they might not need. But this is missing the point and can actually lead you to a far worse situation.

It’s vital to consider the cost of inaction. Cybercrime against your business not only costs you a significant amount of money to fix but can have knock-on effects across many aspects of your business that will also affect the bottom line. These include issues with compliance and untold damage to your reputation. 

Get the right solutions

It’s clearly important to invest in the right solutions. It may be the case that you don’t have the kind of expertise to determine what you need - and it’s well worth consulting with security specialists. Once you have your cybersecurity measures in place, you need to establish whether they’re effective.

Services like penetration testing see cybersecurity specialists attempt to overcome your security measures using the same techniques and tools that would be utilized in a real cyberattack. This allows you to understand if your current defence measures are effective.

Put strict procedures in place

Businesses need to understand that cybersecurity isn’t only about powerful firewalls and antivirus software - the procedures that you put in place will play an important role in keeping your business secure.

For example, you should have a policy of using strong passwords and making sure that they’re updated on a regular basis. This might sound obvious, but too many companies still use easy-to-guess passwords or those that don’t constitute what’s now considered strong.

These measures help to minimize the need for more expensive cybersecurity options.

Train your staff

Speaking of staff, they play a crucial role in cost-effective cybersecurity. It doesn’t matter how much you spend on software and 24/7 cyber defences if your staff can fall for phishing emails or make errors that lead to data breaches.

It’s definitely worth putting a training programme in place. This training shouldn’t just consist of one session when the staff start - it needs to be updated regularly and attended by all staff to help them keep up to date with the latest techniques and attacks being used by cybercriminals.

Outsource where possible

There’s no doubt that getting high-quality cybersecurity staff is an expensive business. There’s a shortage of cybersecurity skills, which has led to those staff now costing a lot of money to bring into your business.

Hiring full-time cybersecurity staff may not be financially possible for all businesses, and in that case, it’s a great idea to outsource your cybersecurity. Security specialist companies can provide you with the expertise and knowledge you need without breaking the bank.

Final thoughts

It’s certainly the case that businesses need to take their cybersecurity operations seriously - but they also need to do it in a way that won’t overstrain their budget. All of the ideas we have talked about here are important, but perhaps none more than working with professionals who truly understand the needs of the organization and how to protect it against cybercrime.

Making big financial decisions about cybersecurity requires genuine knowledge and expertise - it shouldn’t be assumed that a scattergun approach will be effective. Not only is it less likely to provide the specific security a company needs, but it’ll also almost certainly be more expensive.