3 common misconceptions about recovering from a cyberattack

2024-02-04 07:30:42

The biggest challenge organizations face when managing the impact of a cyber incident is recovering systems and data from a clean backup. The inability to quickly recover data can cause significant harm: operational downtime, inability to respond to customers, regulatory fines, reputational damage and loss of revenue.

While cyber resilience aims to protect, resist and recover from any adverse situation, there are three preconceived ideas that hold back companies in their protection strategy:

Misconception #1: Recovery from a cyberattack is the same as recovery from a disaster

Traditional disaster recovery assumes that data and backup copies are not infected with malware. On the contrary, recovery from a malicious act assumes that the data and backup copies are corrupted; Recovery services should include immutability and anomaly analysis to ensure there are “golden copies” of data that can be used with confidence during recovery.

Many organizations treat all failures the same, regardless of the cause or complexity. However, cyberattacks are unique and it is more difficult to determine whether backup copies have been affected. Initiating recovery without additional data verification and validation can lead to a larger incident.

Misconception #2: the business continuity plan in place is sufficient

Many companies develop and leverage business continuity plans to prepare for and bounce back from potential disruptions. However, malicious acts add a new layer of complexity because they are inherently unpredictable and it is difficult to determine which systems are infected.

Organizations must move from a “static”, regularly updated recovery plan to a “dynamic” recovery plan, constantly updated to address changes in the cyber threat landscape. This is important, because these are increasingly sophisticated and often escape the best protection measures. By implementing a dynamic cyber resilience strategy, organizations can ensure rapid recovery of essential business processes.

Misconception #3: Key business processes are protected from cyberattacks

When a cyberattack occurs, IT and security teams receive numerous requests from across the enterprise to quickly recover applications or data. The multiplication and simultaneity of requests represent a considerable workload for IT professionals. To avoid “chaos” it is necessary to align IT strategies with business objectives before an incident occurs. Having a predefined plan with clear roles and responsibilities for the organization will enable the organization to quickly restore business-critical assets and data.


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