Introduction

In today’s digital-first world, cybersecurity is a fundamental necessity. It’s not surprising that every cybersecurity blog or whitepaper you read today inevitably revolves around ransomware. It’s tiresome to hear about (we know!) but ransomware has become the biggest threat to organizations of all sizes and targets our most critical infrastructure and industry sectors. It’s a game of cat and mouse, and as new threats emerge, security teams must adapt to keep up. The pervasive digitization of business operations, government functions, and personal activities has exponentially increased the volume of sensitive data that’s stored and transmitted online. This shift has unfortunately also broadened the attack surface for cybercriminals, which makes robust cybersecurity measures essential.

Cyberthreats, ranging from data breaches and ransomware attacks to sophisticated state-sponsored cyber espionage, pose significant risks to the integrity of critical infrastructure, the privacy of your personal information, even and the stability of global economies. Therefore, data security should be at the forefront of every organization’s strategy since the threat of cyberattacks, primarily ransomware, is a clear and present danger. Unfortunately, 85% of organizations have had at least one ransomware attack in 20221. What’s even more alarming is the fact that today’s ransomware attacks aren’t just locking organizations out of their data, they’re exfiltrating, stealing, selling or archiving that data for use in other extortion schemes.

Preventing malicious access to this data should be the top goal of any cybersecurity plan. However, no organization should assume that their defenses will always hold. So, having the ability to recover your data is equally important. Of organizations affected by ransomware, 15% of production data was lost on average, which highlights the importance of having a well-designed and reliable data recovery plan. Effective cybersecurity practices protect against unauthorized access to data, ensure the continuity of operations, and maintain the trust between consumers and service providers. As cyber threats evolve in complexity and scale, the importance of cybersecurity in safeguarding digital assets, protecting individual privacy, and preserving national security cannot be overstated. It is a critical pillar in the architecture of our digital society and ensures that we can navigate, innovate, and communicate in this realm with confidence.

The recent update to the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) 2.03 marks a pivotal evolution in he standard approach to cybersecurity and reflects shifting paradigms in a world where digital threats are increasingly complex and pervasive. This paper explores the updated NIST CSF Framework and discusses places where Veeam Software can assist with implementing this framework.

Author: Andre Troskie Veeam Field CISO EMEA

Whitepaper: veeam_nist_security_white_paper_2