The degree to which we have become dependent on digital technology and the internet continues to significantly influence how we live.
This new frontier has brought with it a huge array of benefits that permeate every facet of our daily lives – but that doesn’t mean there aren’t drawbacks. Cybersecurity is something experts three decades ago never envisaged we’d have to prioritize, but as cybercrime increases at a rate proportional to the positive elements of the digital revolution, it’s essential that all sectors of our society recognize its importance.
In this article, you’ll learn of the main areas cybersecurity is most important.
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Banking and Financial Services
In the financial sector, a focus on cybersecurity is in absolutely essential part of daily operations. Given the billions of dollars worth of transactions banks handle every single day, they’re the obvious target for a cyber attack.
Attempts to steal customer information or silently siphon funds are common, and an attack can cause not only major disruptions to the individual and the bank themselves, but to all other networks linked to them.
Even more worryingly, banks store private information on their customers such as addresses and social security information; there have been many cases where this information has been collected and sold on the dark web, compromising the privacy and safety of millions of people.
For this reason, all major banks employ rigorous cybersecurity policies involving multiple layers of encryption.
Government and Defence
Government and defense sectors are a huge target for cybercriminals given the sensitive, classified information they hold. Attacks on governmental bodies can cause untold destruction, so it makes sense that they’re some of the most heavily protected of all.
National defense secrets are constantly under threat, and a breach of these highly secured systems could have global consequences. Given these potentially far-reaching catastrophes, cybersecurity in this area is taken just as seriously – if not even more seriously – as physical security matters.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) are the two main governing bodies that play a key role in working to protect critical infrastructure and mitigate risk as much as possible.
Telecommunications
Telecommunications comprises data that includes text, voice calls, and internet traffic. As you may imagine, in the wrong hands, this sort of data has the potential to be devastatingly destructive – both on an individual and collective level.
Telecom breaches make for one of the most common areas in which cyber attacks are employed and have the potential to expose the most private aspects of people’s lives. For this reason, companies work hard to secure their networks by encrypting data and using techniques such as two-factor authentication. They also constantly monitor the network to detect threats as quickly as possible as soon as they occur.
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Healthcare and Medical Equiptment
As medical devices become more digitized and capable of connecting to the internet, a very serious cybersecurity threat has revealed itself.
To improve their efficiency and effectiveness, many modern medical devices such as implantables and bedside monitoring equipment collect a wide variety of patient data. Hackers can potentially gain access to this sensitive information and severely compromise patient care.
Companies like Blue Goat Cyber have recognized this potential risk and step in before the product goes to market to make sure that it’s safe and secure from a cyber security perspective. In this day and age, this sort of service is a key prerequisite.
Retail and E-commerce
E-commerce has revolutionized the way we shop, and given that online retail sales are expected to exceed 4.1 trillion dollars this year in the US alone, it’s no wonder that these platforms represent a major target for cybercriminals.
Thankfully, retailers employ many methods to protect their customer’s personal information: one of the main methods is to use secure payment gateways, which encrypt the payment as it’s being processed to ensure a safe transaction, bridging a retailer’s website with the payment processor and the customer. Common gateway functionality is provided by services like Stripe, Paypal, and Square, and the retailer should always make sure that these gateways comply with the Industry Data Security Standards.
Wrapping Up
There are many different areas of our society where cybersecurity is of paramount importance, and as the digital revolution continues to expand into new territories, so will the need for more rigorous infrastructure to protect what we hold dear. The widespread application of cybersecurity is something everyone should be aware of, so hopefully, you now have a good idea of the main areas where it’s most important.
