What are Cybersecurity Frameworks and Why Do They Matter?
Every 39 seconds, a cyber attack occurs somewhere in the world. According to Forbes, cybercrimes cost U.S. businesses over $6.5 billion in 2021. The figure appears to be growing significantly, making it critical for businesses to protect themselves from breaches by implementing numerous cybersecurity procedures and frameworks. So what are cybersecurity frameworks and what makes them important for your organization’s protection? Let’s understand.
What are Cybersecurity Frameworks?
A cybersecurity framework is a set of practices and guidelines an organization implements to safeguard its data and manage cybersecurity risk.
This is linked to the organization’s risk management strategy and activities. When combined with current information technology and artificial intelligence, a good cybersecurity risk management framework can prove to be the most effective strategic tool to prevent cyber assaults. There are various cybersecurity frameworks, namely NIST, ISO 27001 & ISO 27002, SOC2, NERC-CIP, HIPAA, GDPR, and FISMA. Multiple cybersecurity frameworks can be implemented to manage data risk.
Why are Cybersecurity Frameworks Important?
According to a Fugue 2022 analysis, 36 percent of 300 cloud engineering and security experts polled said their firm had a severe cloud security leak the previous year. It’s happening at a large scale on an individual and an organizational level. Data is crucial for everyone. With hackers attacking company systems and installing ransomware, data gets infiltrated, compromised, and even stolen, causing the company tremendous losses. To prevent this, companies must invest in cybersecurity infrastructures as a preventive measure.
Types of Cybersecurity Frameworks
Here is a list of different types of cybersecurity frameworks that organizations use:
1. NIST Cybersecurity Framework
Created by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), which falls under the United States Commerce Department, this framework is by far the most popular in cybersecurity. It has five core functionalities: identify, protect, detect, respond, and recover.
You can learn more about the NIST Cybersecurity Framework here.
2. ISO 27001 and ISO 27002
ISO 27001 and ISO 27002 are part of the ISO 27000 series. 27001 is the world’s most well-known standard for information security management systems and provides direction on how to set up a solid framework. The ISO 27002 guidelines implement control.
3. SOC2
SOC 2 is an auditing technique that allows service providers to safely manage their data to preserve their organization’s interests and clients’ privacy. SOC 2 compliance is a minimum criterion for security-conscious enterprises when selecting a SaaS provider.
4. NERC-CIP
The North American Electric Reliability Corporation Critical Infrastructure Protection (NERC CIP) plan is a collection of guidelines designed to regulate, enforce, monitor, and manage the security of the North American Bulk Electric System (BES). These criteria relate especially to BES’s cybersecurity.
5. HIPAA
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) is a federal law. The law mandates that nobody can reveal sensitive health information without a patient’s knowledge or consent.
6. GDPR
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a rule that compels enterprises to respect European Union’s individuals’ data and privacy while doing transactions within European Union member states.
7. FISMA
The Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) of 2002 is a federal legislation in the United States that establishes a comprehensive framework for protecting government information, operations, and assets against natural and man-made threats. It was a part of the 2002 E-Government Act.
Most Popular Security Framework
The NIST Cybersecurity Framework was created in response to former US President Obama’s executive order. It called for more coordination between the public and private sectors in detecting, analyzing, and managing cyber risk. While compliance is voluntary, the NIST has established itself as the gold standard for measuring cybersecurity maturity, finding security weaknesses, and satisfying cybersecurity standards. As a result, it is one of the most prevalent cybersecurity frameworks.
Cybersecurity frameworks can take some effort to understand but Emeritus has the tools you need to build a solid knowledge base in this area. Explore the online cybersecurity courses to upskill yourself and help your company become cyber attack-ready.
By Siddhesh Shinde
Write to us at content@emeritus.org
