What is a Cyber Security Assessment or IT Risk Assessment?
Should all businesses get a Risk Assessment? YES!
When you hear “Cyber Security Assessment,” you can assume that a “Risk Assessment” is implied.
A risk assessment aims for an organization to understand “the cybersecurity risk to organizational operations (including mission, functions, image, or reputation), devices, organizational assets, and individuals” — NIST Cybersecurity Framework.
The NIST Cybersecurity Framework has five main categories: Identity, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover. These categories provide activities to achieve specific cybersecurity outcomes and reference examples of guidance to achieve those outcomes.
The Frameworks provide a common language for understanding, managing, and expressing cybersecurity risk to internal and external stakeholders. It can help identify and prioritize actions for reducing cybersecurity risk and is a tool for aligning policy, business, and technological approaches to managing that risk. It can be used to manage cybersecurity risk across entire organizations or focus on delivering critical services within an organization. In addition, different entities — including sector coordinating structures, associations, and organizations — can use the Framework for other purposes, including creating standard Profiles.
The NIST Framework focuses on using business drivers to guide cybersecurity processes.
“The Framework focuses on using business drivers to guide cybersecurity activities and considering cybersecurity risks as part of the organization’s risk management processes. The Framework consists of three parts: the Framework Core, the Implementation Tiers, and the Framework Profiles. The Framework Core is a set of cybersecurity activities, outcomes, and informative references common across sectors and critical infrastructure. Elements of the Core provide detailed guidance for developing individual and organizational Profiles. Using Profiles, the Framework will help an organization to align and prioritize its cybersecurity activities with its business/mission requirements, risk tolerances, and resources. The Tiers provide a mechanism for organizations to view and understand the characteristics of their approach to managing cybersecurity risk, which will help prioritize and achieve cybersecurity objectives. While this document was developed to improve cybersecurity risk management in critical infrastructure, the Framework can be used by organizations in any sector or community. The Framework enables organizations –regardless of size, degree of cybersecurity risk, or sophistication –to apply the principles and best risk management practices to improve security and resilience. The Framework provides a common organizing structure for multiple approaches to cybersecurity by assembling standards, guidelines, and practices that are working effectively today. Moreover, because it references globally recognized standards for cybersecurity, the Framework can serve as a model for international cooperation on strengthening cybersecurity in critical infrastructure and other sectors and communities”.
Please read more about the NIST framework here: NIST Framework.