Keeping sensitive data and critical tech safe from cyberattacks is crucial for businesses like yours. Your survival and growth depend on how well your organization can withstand cyberthreats. That’s where cyber risk management comes into play.

Businesses with solid cyber risk management strategies can build formidable cyber defenses and reduce risks without compromising business growth. Besides enhancing security, it also ensures your business stays compliant.

In this blog, we’ll share the core principles of cyber risk management and show you how integrating it with a simple but effective security framework can help you achieve strategic success.  

Key Characteristics of Risk-Based Cybersecurity

Risk-based cybersecurity helps organizations focus their efforts and resources on the most critical risks. This approach aims to reduce vulnerabilities, safeguard what matters most to you and ensure you make informed decisions.

Here are the key characteristics of risk-based cybersecurity:

Risk reduction: By proactively identifying and neutralizing threats, you can reduce and minimize the potential impact of a cyber incident.

Prioritized investment: By identifying and assessing risks, you can concentrate your investment efforts on areas that need your attention most.

Addressing critical risks: Dealing with the most severe vulnerabilities first can help you strengthen your business security. That is why it is important to conduct vulnerability assessments regularly, at least every quarter if not more frequently. 

All Databranch Comprehensive Care and Foundation Security clients have scheduled automatic patching and Windows updates on their devices to assist with vulnerability management. Visit us here to learn how we can help take this off your IT plate.

Cyber Risk Management Frameworks

Cybersecurity risk frameworks act as a guide that helps businesses achieve the full potential of a risk-based approach. Here are several ways frameworks can help you enhance your current cybersecurity posture:

• Takes away the guesswork and give businesses a structured way to assess their current cybersecurity posture.
• Helps organizations systematically focus their investments on addressing the most critical and relevant risks.
• Provides organizations with the right guidance that helps build security, which is crucial for building customer trust.
• Are built using controls that have been tried and tested. They essentially help businesses implement effective security controls.
• Designed to help organizations achieve compliance with government and industry regulations.

NIST Cybersecurity Framework

The National Institute of Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework (NIST CSF) is a popular, user-friendly framework that empowers business leaders like you to boost organizational cybersecurity. Think of it as a valuable tool created by top security experts to help you protect and secure your digital assets.

Here’s how the NIST CSF supports a risk-based approach:

• It helps you understand your risk by identifying what is most valuable to you.
• It gives you a high view of people, processes, technology, information and other business-critical aspects that need to be secured from threats so your business can operate successfully.
• It helps you prioritize your risks based on their impact on your business.
• It helps you allocate your resources where they matter most and ensures you maximize your investment.
• It promotes continuous monitoring and helps you adapt to evolving threats.

Secure your Future

Safeguarding your business from cyberthreats is critical for the survival and growth of your business. Don’t leave your business security to chance. Partnering with Databranch as your managed IT provider, means your business will have the security of knowing that your network is being monitored and maintained on a 24/7 basis.

Download our infographic, “Assess Your Cyber-Risks in 7 Critical Steps,” and strengthen your defenses against lurking cyber dangers.

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In today’s digital age, most businesses rely heavily on technology to streamline their operations and stay ahead of the competition. However, managing an entire IT infrastructure in-house can be overwhelming and costly.

That’s where outsourcing IT services comes into play. By partnering with Databranch, you can offload the complexities of managing your technology infrastructure and focus on your core objectives.

However, with a myriad of IT service providers in the market, how can you ensure that you choose the right one for your business? In this blog, we’ll take you through a few important things you should consider when looking for an outsourced IT partner. 

Factors to Consider

Here are a few key factors to keep in mind before you commit to an IT partner:

Cultural Alignment

Choosing an IT service provider that aligns closely with your organization’s culture is crucial for a successful partnership. Cultural alignment means the IT service provider shares values, work ethics and communication styles with your business.

With a strong cultural fit, the collaboration becomes seamless and both parties can work together more effectively. This alignment enhances communication, trust and mutual understanding, leading to smoother project implementation and better results.

This is why Databranch strives to understand and respect your organizational culture, allowing you to foster a productive working relationship and achieve your IT objectives more efficiently.

Vested Interest and Industry Knowledge

A reliable IT service provider should demonstrate a vested interest in your organization’s success. This means they are genuinely invested in building a long-term partnership and are committed to understanding your business goals and challenges.

The IT service provider should also possess industry knowledge and experience relevant to your specific sector. This understanding allows them to provide tailor-made IT solutions that address your unique needs.

When partnering with Databranch, we express a genuine interest in your success and industry expertise. We want your company to benefit from our insights, strategic guidance and proactive support. Our knowledge of industry best practices can help you navigate technological advancements and make informed decisions that drive your business forward.

References and Value Demonstration

When evaluating potential IT service providers, it is essential to seek references and ask for evidence of the value they have provided to their clients. Speaking with their current or past clients allows you to gain valuable insights into their performance, reliability and customer satisfaction.

Requesting real metrics and use cases enables you to assess the IT service provider’s track record and evaluate how their services have benefited other businesses. This information gives you confidence in their capabilities and helps you gauge their suitability for your organization.

By choosing an IT service provider with positive references and a demonstrated ability to deliver value, you can minimize risks and make an informed decision that aligns with your business goals.

This is why Databranch actively provides client testimonials and our updated certifications on our website.

Round-the-Clock Monitoring

Technology disruptions can occur anytime, and prompt resolution of IT issues is crucial to minimize downtime and maintain business continuity. An IT service provider offering round-the-clock monitoring ensures that performance issues are detected before they occur. 

By partnering with Databranch, you can have peace of mind knowing that any IT issues will be addressed promptly, reducing the impact on your operations and enabling your business to run smoothly without interruption.

Not only do we offer 24/7 remote monitoring, but our managed clients also receive patch management along with discounted emergency services.

Act before it’s too late

Ready to find the perfect IT service provider for your business? Don’t wait any longer — reach out to us today at 716-373-4467 x115 or [email protected] to schedule a meeting. Our team of experts is eager to understand your unique needs and discuss how our services can help your organization thrive.

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Is there still room to improve your remote team’s productivity? 

Databranch has helped many businesses add remote work capabilities to their technology environment over the past year, always keeping security top-of-mind throughout.

However, we also offer a productivity monitoring software solution that can monitor web and desktop application use across all your company’s computers – whether in-office or remote.

It offers a balance of providing your management team with insights without extensive policy documentation. Meaning it is a smart fit if you want visibility without heavy-handed intrusion.

This includes:

• Monitoring: You will be able to monitor all employee desktop apps and web use whether in-office or remote
• Visibility: Provides an overview of workforce productivity without the hassle of looking over each employee’s shoulder
• Timelines: In the instance of malware detection, you can track back to specific events to view the history
• Reporting: View robust reports to identify productivity trends and optimize workflow. This helps determine which web-based applications provide the most business value.

This software will allow you to monitor active tabs, desktop apps, and idle time. You can then store up to 6 months of your data for instances such as legal compliances or auditing purposes. 

The program makes filtering through these logged events easy and fast. Simply type into a search box and the event filter will automatically scan your data, compiling records from specific endpoints. 

This means you’ll have visibility into which endpoint was browsing certain websites or using a specific application.

Reach out to Databranch today at 716-373-4467 x115 or [email protected] if you’d like to learn more.

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