IT security has become an important part of every IT business strategy. The IT Security assessments were simple in the past. A small IT team will check your business applications and antivirus software. They will help you in optimizing your security settings. Authorization and access of your users were managed by using security tools.

There are various things which are already done by your IT team. For example, your IT team will already managing access issues and security tools.

According to a report from Contextis, more than 80% of impact vulnerabilities can be easily exploited. More than 97% of business applications contain at least one vulnerability. In this article, we are going to talk about the importance of IT Security assessment.

Purpose of IT security assessment:

The modern IT security assessments have changed with time. We use different tactics for performing IT security assessments. IT security professionals need to think outside the box for reproducing critical security loopholes and flaws. They need to focus on fixing these security loopholes before attackers can exploit them.

Every business is using the internet for operating their business. It helps them in connecting with millions of clients. However, it also opens doors to attackers. You need to follow procedures according to your security assessments for ensuring that all these doors are closed.

The main goal of your IT security team is to perform security assessments. They need to audit and review your IT security strategy. This will help you in finding the vulnerabilities in your network before attackers can exploit them. These vulnerabilities can be exploited by attackers. They can use it for entering your network.

If there is something that can disrupt your business operations, then you need to assess it. Make sure that you know about the bugs present in your systems. This will help you in fixing these bugs. Some of the main types of IT security assessments are:

Vulnerability assessment

You can perform a vulnerability assessment for finding weaknesses in your network, system, and applications. These applications can be compromised by attackers.

However, you need to regularly conduct these assessments. Every software changes after some time. Developers are constantly updating their applications. Thus, there are certain features or code that you need to scan again.

IT Security audits

These are different from actual security assessments. It will be performed by governing bodies that will set the standards that you need to follow. For example, you might need to follow HIPAA security compliance.

Security standards will vary according to your organization. Some companies need to follow higher security standards. However, you should always ensure that you are following the relevant industry regulations and rules. This will help you in avoiding legal challenges. Also, it will help you in maintaining your reputation in the market. Most clients will only work with compliant organizations.

Penetration Testing

Penetration testing will help you in testing vulnerabilities that are present in your network. It is very different from the vulnerability assessment. Penetration testing is generally down after the vulnerability assessment.

A team of ethical or white hat hackers will test your network for vulnerabilities. They will first do a vulnerability assessment for finding vulnerabilities in your applications. You can also use vulnerability scanners for finding vulnerabilities in your applications. After that, a team of ethical hackers will test these vulnerabilities. They will try to exploit these vulnerabilities. Sometimes they will try to hack your website or steal your information. Thus, they will think like a black hat hacker.

The results will be reported to your company. Also, everything will be done with utmost IT security. They will ensure that your network won’t go down during penetration testing. Sometimes they will copy your IT environment for testing your applications. First, they will tell you about the vulnerabilities present in your network. Thus, you can work on fixing these bugs.

Security policy

This is a set of documents that will describe your IT security plan. It will help you in protecting your IT and physical assets. You need to regularly update this policy document.

You should ensure that your employees know about your security plan. This will ensure that they can execute this plan for protecting your assets and data.

Risk Assessment

This will help you in determining the risk level that your business can tolerate. It will help you in checking the probability of these threats. You can measure the impact of these security attacks. These factors will depend on your business attack.

Security Assessment Report

This report will include the objectives, limitations, background information, and basic outline. It will include a report about your current IT environment. Also, it will include the examination methods used to test your environment. This report will mention the assessment equipment and tools used for conducting the security assessment. You can check the overall finding by reading the summary report.

It will include detailed information about the results achieved from penetration testing and vulnerability testing. Also, it will include the drawings which you can use for understanding your current IT infrastructure. The report will end with the recommendations that you can follow for improving your IT security. You can also use test results for re-designing your IT strategy. This will ensure that you have addressed the latest vulnerabilities. Also, you should regularly conduct an IT security assessment as the attack landscape is changing with time.

Conclusion

An IT security assessment will help you in fighting multiple security threats. These assessments will help you in reducing the possibility of an outsider attack. It will also create awareness in your company. Your employees will know about the best security practices. Thus, they can help you in protecting your business from attackers. You should also consider working with a good MSP. Experienced MSPs like Bleuwire can help you in protecting your business from attackers. They will help you in conducting an IT security assessment. Also, they will help you in updating your security plan. This will ensure that your entire network is protected from attackers. If you need more information regarding IT security assessment, then you can contact Bleuwire.

Contact us today to learn about Bleuwire™ services and solutions in how we can help your business.