Cyber Security vs Information Security
The world depends on knowledge and gathering of information from different sources. One of the most important concerns of businesses around the world is to keep the data and information related to their company or client’s as safe as possible. Preventing the breach of data and keeping it confidential is the responsibility and duty of every company.
The Need for Securing Data
This decade brought about an awareness of protecting data. The biggest asset of any company and business is its data and information. This valuable data is crucial for any company’s growth and success. Loss of data in any form, whether electronic, cloud or internet or even physical documents, may lead to financial losses, sales, theft of formulas or blueprints of a project.
For example, if you’re running a very successful business and one fine day, your rival company gets its hands on your company’s plans, projects, your profit rates, presentation and analysis, they basically have the ability to significantly damage your profile and steal your company’s profitIn this manner, years of blood and sweat invested in the company is wasted, merely because of improper management of data.
The Consequences of Data and Information Theft
In the last decade, several big data breaches have led to the downfall of many companies. One such incident was that of Yahoo!.In the 2013-14 data breach, about one billion accounts were hacked and sensitive information such as user IDs, email IDs, phone numbers etc were stolen. The web giant was finally forced to sell Yahoo’s core internet access at $340 million less than the originally agreed upon $4.48, for which Verizon acquired the company. This was just one famous example that served as a warning for every other company, and reminded all that data security is crucial and urgent.
Consequences of any person or company stealing information or breaching data are grave and unyielding. Around the world, there are many laws and acts that lay down strict punishment for data thievery and a set of regulations to protect these datas, whether it’s related to a person, business or the government.
Information and Cyber Security
Often people confuse these terms because they are, to some extent, very closely related to each other. However, there’s a slight difference between the two; while both of them deal with data protection measures and information, they are not the same. If we observe carefully, we’ll find important distinctions between the two.
Information Security
Information Security, popularly known as InfoSec, refers to the mechanisms drawn and practised to safeguard sensitive and valuable information & data from disruption, modification and destruction. An Information Security analyst deals with protecting all kinds of data related to a company or business. In other words, they are concerned with the confidentiality, integrity and availability (CIAs) of the data.
In the modern world, the valuable data of most companies has shifted to electronic devices such as desktops, laptops, cell phones or saved on the internet clouds etc. Today, getting hold of data and information needs only a few clicks of buttons.
A person dealing with Information Security is concerned with protecting data. They specialize in information handling and categorising information on the basis of need, sensitivity and value. They make sure that information of any kind is secure.
Cyber Security
Cyber Security deals with all the data that is available in the electronic form such as desktop computers, laptop, servers,networks or any other electronic devices. Cyber Security refers to the prevention of attacks or corruption of datas available online or on any other electronic device. An organization is created and functions on a strong network of people and technology and the company needs an accolade network for a strong Cyber Security system.
A Cybersecurity Expert deals with protecting the information saved on any electronic device through different instruments and cyber security measures. A part of their job is to recognize critical data and it’s storage on the device and risk exposure. Also, they must develop and identify appropriate technology and apparatus to protect the information.
Today, all businesses and corporations prioritize Cyber Security and make sure that they have a well built security system to protect their data and information. Identifying the risks related to that information and taking measures is very important for a growing company. Not only that, the value you assign to any information makes it prone to risk and danger, thus making it important for you to choose where you want to store it.
The Importance of Information and Cyber Security
Information Security and its implementation in a company helps protect their capacity to function in a secure environment, without any risk of exposure and mismanagement. It protects the technology and and the IT systems of the company and also secure,organize and use the information better. Implementing information security in the company helps them to better safeguard their sensitive information by preventing and detecting any internal or external threats to that information.
As the world is growing to be more reliant on technology and devices, it has also created a rise in the need for Cyber Security and to secure these technologies and devices from external attacks and threats that they pose to the information saved in the devices. As stated earlier, on the importance of data, we need to realize how often we rely on our electronic devices to keep our information secure. The interconnectedness however, has made things a little difficult on the internet and created a threat to our privacy and security. Cyber Security, thus, tries to protect this information and privacy using different measures.
Reasons for Investing in Information and Cyber Security
Rise in Breach of Information
While technology has brought about a lot of positive changes to our world, it has also created a potential threat to society. There have been many reports and cases against loss of information from many companies around the world, for which they had to pay very prices. Hence, this creates the need for investing in security to combat this challenge.
Availability of hacking tools
The rise in cybercrimes and funded criminals make it difficult to casually manage their data. A report says that a company’s intellectual property costing around $600 billion was threatened. The increased rate of cyber crime also makes it easy to access the tolls for hacking into a system and access its data.
Regulatory Laws
Not only the breach of information, but there have been laws that reinforce the need for security regarding datas and information. Compliance of these laws are expected and violation of these laws may cost profoundly to the businesses. Regulatory boards like GDPR ensures that these laws are enforced in all the organizations stringently.
Rise in Sophisticated hackers
The DDos attacks have increased during the later half of 2018. The sophisticated attacks like DDos, fileless malware, Iot attacks have increased during the last few years. These attacks are likely to successfully disrupt and and distort the files and data that is available on the computer.
Manage Risks
A business cannot grow without risks and challenges. However, the challenges related to data and information are sensitive to the company. Having proper security around the information manages the risk of data threat and cyber crime. They reduce the disclosure, modification and distortion of unauthorized data.
Certifications
There are a few certifications in the field of InfoSec and Cyber Security that are considered essential in an organization with respect to quality. Mostly there are Chief Information Security Officers (CISO) who implement the Cyber Security Policies in a company. Other than that, there are Certified Ethical Hackers (CEH) who discover the vulnerabilities in the system and prevent penetration. A Certified Information Security Manager (CISM) develops and manages the Information Security Systems and implements the best security measures in the company.
Another important aspect is the Cyber Security ratings which are usually given to drive an organization towards better security. They are helpful in identifying threats from different sources and managing the risks. These quantitative metrics help to assess and indicate the organization’s risk to security issues.
Abridgement
Through the above discussion, we may understand that Information Security and Cyber Security, although almost similar, have different meanings and uses. While CyberSecurity looks after managing the data on electronic devices and Servers, Information Security is more concerned with managing information as a whole in any form or shape. It deals with protecting data from both internal and external threats and ensures that the data is in good hands.
If we consider the similarities, both of these protect data and information externally and create a safe environment for the data stored. Other than that, both deal with data handling and securing valuable information of the companies.
Information Security may be considered a broader approach to data management which includes cyber security measures too. It may not be necessary that an expert in Information Security have an idea about Cyber Security. However, Cyber Security experts have also begun playing the role of Information Security Advisors.