Cisco has launched a new cybersecurity assessment tool in order to help small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in Asia Pacific to better understand their overall security posture. Cybersecurity has become a key focus area for organisations as they embrace hybrid work, allowing employees to securely work from anywhere and through various devices. This has expanded the attack surface and increased cybersecurity risks beyond the perimeters that companies have traditionally built to protect the business.
The new online assessment tool assesses the “cybersecurity readiness” of each organisation through the lens of “Zero Trust,” the concept that all attempts to access an organisation’s network architecture are not granted until trust can be verified. When a user accesses an application using a device, both the user and device are verified, with that trust continuously monitored. This helps secure the organisation’s applications and environments, from any user, device, and location.
The tool assesses the organisation’s level of maturity in six areas of Zero Trust i.e., User and Identity, Device, Networks, Workload (applications), Data and, Security Operations. Once the organisation enters details of its security capabilities and policies, the tool assesses the overall security posture of the organisation based on industry and sector benchmarks.
It generates a bespoke report for each organisation which indicates their level of maturity, challenges, and opportunities in each of the six areas of Zero Trust. Where applicable, it offers tailored recommendations on the technologies and solutions that can help strengthen the organisation’s overall security posture and preparedness in a hybrid work environment.
SMBs in Asia Pacific are becoming increasingly educated about current cybersecurity risks and are investing more to better prepare for cyber incidents. According to Cisco’s Cybersecurity for SMBs: Asia Pacific Businesses Prepare for Digital Defense study, three quarters (75%) of SMBs in the region said they are more concerned about cybersecurity today than they were 12 months ago.
The study also revealed that one in two (56%) SMBs across Asia Pacific suffered a cyber incident in the last 12 months. About half (51%) said that these cyber incidents cost their business US$500,000 or more. The number one reason highlighted as the cause of these incidents was cybersecurity solutions not being adequate to detect or prevent the attack. These attacks have tangible impact on SMBs – from disruption in operations and loss of revenue to negative impact on the organisation’s reputation.
The mass shift to hybrid working, triggered by the pandemic, has led to a sizable proportion of employees connecting to organisations’ networks and accessing information from outside the office, with many using personal devices to do so. According to SMBs surveyed for the study, phishing, unsecured laptops, targeted attacks by malicious actors, and use of personal devices are among the top threats to their overall security. A well-executed Zero Trust strategy can help mitigate these threats and safeguard businesses and customers.
“The state of cybersecurity in the Asia Pacific region is becoming increasingly complex in a hyper-connected, digital-first world. As SMBs pick up the pace on their digitalisation journeys and gear up for a cloud and application-first hybrid work environment, cybersecurity must be foundational to any digitalisation efforts to ensure end-to-end protection across their workforce, workloads, and the workplace. One critical way to do this is to adopt a zero-trust strategy,” said Juan Huat Koo, Director, Cybersecurity, ASEAN, Cisco.
“As a first step to adopting this strategy, SMBs can use Cisco’s new, online self-assessment tool aimed at helping businesses improve their resilience by providing a better understanding of their cybersecurity preparedness, and the opportunities and gaps that require attention,” he added.
Link to the assessment tool: www.cisco.com/go/ztat
To learn more, visit www.cisco.com/c/en_sg/products/security/cybersecurity-for-smbs-in-asia-pacific.