Unveiling The Secret To Improving Cybersecurity Capabilities

Dewayne Hart is SEMAIS President and CEO.

The technology landscape has evolved significantly, presenting various challenges to reducing risks and enhancing cyber protection. Organizations frequently strive to stay ahead and ensure their operations remain uninterrupted, but sometimes, they encounter setbacks. When a root cause analysis is conducted, it often reveals that security capabilities are deficient.

When examining the core of cybersecurity capabilities, having the necessary resources, technologies and processes to counter cyberattacks is crucial. Many organizations have discovered that their cybersecurity capabilities need improvement. Despite these challenges, key strategies are available to enhance cybersecurity capabilities.

I will outline strategies for improving cybersecurity capabilities and how their improvement can reduce exploits, risks and cyberattacks.

Expanding Vulnerability Management

Traditional approaches to reducing threats and countering cyberattacks have focused on vulnerability management. This process plays a crucial role in determining true capabilities. While many organizations prioritize technology, additional areas outside the technological realm can disrupt security capabilities and affect vulnerability management.

When assessing security capabilities, the NIST framework aids organizations in enhancing their cyber defense programs. This involves integrating both people and processes into the assessment lifecycle based on NIST guidance. At this stage, capabilities are either optimized or deemed inadequate due to human- and process-related risks.

When properly integrated into assessments, human errors and business processes that commonly fail are labeled as vulnerabilities. This can be as simple as labor shortages. Many assessments overlook this factor, and businesses must overstress their staff to meet cybersecurity demands.

In my published work, “The Cybersecurity Mindset,” I emphasized holistic defense measures and the importance of 360 degrees of security visibility. This defines how organizations examine cybersecurity at all steps, phases and categories. When vulnerability management programs are executed effectively, they enhance the precision of security capabilities.

Leveraging Advanced Technologies

Determining capabilities is achievable when actionable and reliable data exist. Every security group must capture information concerning threat analytics, asset management, configuration details or incidents. Analyzing these critical data points can be challenging when manual analysis is heavily utilized.

Automated analysis involves developing capability information through digital systems. This process minimizes errors and provides real-time data points. It also helps decision-makers identify their strengths, weaknesses and security state. This is why many executives prefer actionable dashboards with charts, metrics and potential issues. Without the appropriate technologies, they would spend significant time analyzing data, scheduling unnecessary meetings and manually determining their security capabilities.

Automation also transcends into having cyber tools that optimize and drive efficiency. Firewalls, managed detection systems, malware scanners and log analysis tools form the backbone of security capabilities. When properly configured, each can provide protection and help identify vulnerabilities. Too often, organizations’ capabilities are reduced due to system misconfigurations or inadequate control.

Leaders can improve their security capabilities by integrating an AI security operations center (AI-SOC). This concept provides advanced data correlation, real-time analysis and precision. It also enables organizations to create a unified threat picture (UTP). In my previous article on AI-driven SOC, I discussed how UTP functions.

Observing Operational Resiliency

Cybersecurity threats are global and do not discriminate against IT environments. The seriousness of the threats and the potential consequences to security capabilities are significant and increasing.

Since corporations rely on technology, including digital connections and systems, the status of security capabilities is essential. This stems from cyber threat actors becoming more aggressive and sophisticated and the importance of sustaining cyber protection. To stay ahead, organizations must appropriately monitor, assess and manage their cybersecurity risk profiles, including their operational resiliency program.

Operational resilience is a practical security standard for countering adverse conditions and sustaining systems. Many seasoned professionals have used it. Its intersection with cyber capabilities involves understanding failures and sustaining operations while limiting impact. We could also relate its function to availability, which describes the system’s uptime.

In 2020, Bain and Company shared important insights regarding operational reliance and the measurement of security capabilities. One of their key statements is: “True resilience comes only with sustained dedication to building up a broad range of strategic capabilities and developing cybersecurity maturity.” This notion aligns closely with the concept of operational resilience. As companies assess their cybersecurity programs, they must be honest and focus on developing effective systems. This requires both informal and formal testing to ensure effectiveness.

Informal testing involves unscheduled and unscripted observation. It can be as simple as monitoring reports, user interactions and system availability. This is where advanced technologies come into play, as they provide key data points through normal operations.

In contrast, formal testing is a planned activity that requires third-party intervention. This type of test involves assessments conducted through sampling and observing system outcomes. It can be likened to contingency planning or disaster recovery for critical resources. Organizations benefit from formal testing by gaining insights into their strengths and weaknesses based on various testing scenarios. Unlike informal testing, formal testing is much more rigorous.

How To Implement Strategies

Creating a capable cybersecurity environment is achievable, though it requires resources, time and strategic planning. Many organizations focus on improving in response to challenges rather than proactively implementing defensive measures. Relying solely on reactive actions can lead to significant risks that stem from failing capabilities.

One of the most effective strategies for assessing security capabilities is through maturity testing, such as the Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI). This model and training program helps organizations enhance their cybersecurity capabilities. Conducting such assessments can provide valuable insights into areas where improvements are needed.

Organizations can use current state analysis (CSA) to overcome budget constraints. This paper-based assessment evaluates security capabilities and readiness. However, the CSA’s limitation is that it is a snapshot of current capabilities, unlike CMMI, which offers a more in-depth and progressive evaluation. Regardless of the type of testing performed, both approaches enable organizations to be more proactive and engaged rather than merely reactive.

A key takeaway is that you cannot protect what you cannot see. Therefore, assessing your capabilities regularly and early in the process is beneficial. This proactive approach will help you identify any weaknesses and enhance security programs.

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