Insights

Safeguarding your data: evaluating cybersecurity technology measures from procurement to supply chain

Jonathan Colehower, Managing Director, UST Global Supply Chain

The growing importance of cybersecurity

In today's digital landscape, technology is the cornerstone of cybersecurity strategies, helping businesses protect sensitive company and customer data from risks associated with data breaches, malware, ransomware, phishing emails, computer viruses, and other cyber threats. As technology advances at lightning speed to enhance our digital economy, so do the opportunities for cybercriminals to develop more sophisticated and sinister schemes. The severity of these threats cannot be overstated. Consequently, global cybercrime incidents are exploding. From 2022 to 2023 alone, global data compromises surged by a staggering 72%, causing significant financial harm, disrupting services, and damaging the reputations of businesses, governments, and individuals.

This rapid increase in cybercrime underscores the critical need for robust security precautions worldwide.

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Understanding cybersecurity measures

Cybersecurity involves protecting computer systems, networks, data, and devices from attacks by malicious actors, which can result in unauthorized access, theft of sensitive data, and damage to hardware and software. Effective cybersecurity practices implement advanced technologies and measures to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data stored and processed on internet-connected devices and computer systems. Key technologies include firewalls, multi-factor authentication, access control mechanisms, antivirus software, threat detection, and encryption.

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Technology security checkup: assessing cybersecurity measures

Cybersecurity risk assessment is not just a necessity, but a proactive step towards the holistic health of an organization's cybersecurity measures. This systematic approach empowers companies to identify exposures and threats within their IT environment, helping them evaluate the likelihood and potential severity of security events. Through risk assessments, organizations can modify their security protocols, ensuring robust technology security measures across their entire ecosystem. This process is a powerful weapon, putting the control back in your hands against today's diverse and rapid cyber threats.

Critical evaluation areas include data encryption, network security, user authentication, and incident preparedness.

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How to evaluate cybersecurity in technology solutions

A thorough cybersecurity risk assessment can be divided into five fundamental steps: scoping, risk identification, risk analysis, risk evaluation, and documentation.

1. Scoping: Determine the scope of the assessment, such as a business unit, location, or specific function like payroll processing or a mobile application. Include input and support from all stakeholders to identify necessary assets and processes, specify risks, assess impacts, and define risk tolerance levels.
2. Risk identification: Identify and catalog all physical and digital assets within the scope, including business-critical assets, communication systems, active directory servers, graphics, images, and video archives.
3. Risk analysis: Understand cyberattack vulnerabilities by evaluating potential attacks' likelihood, severity, and impact. Rank each vulnerability on a scale from 1 (low) to 5 (high) to provide a comprehensive view of the threat environment.
4. Risk evaluation: Assess the overall risk environment by comparing the analysis results with predefined risk tolerance levels.
5. Documentation: Record details of risk scenarios, including identification dates, existing security controls, current risk levels, mitigation plans, treatment strategies, and expected residual impacts. Ensure documentation is easily accessible and regularly updated.

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The importance of cybersecurity in procurement

Cybersecurity is crucial in the procurement industry, as weaknesses in the procurement process can lead to data breaches. As more digital procurement tools are added, the threat of cyber-attacks increases. The procurement industry is a cornerstone of the supply chain; without solid security measures, the entire supply chain is at risk.

Procurement plays a vital role in reducing cybersecurity vulnerabilities and mitigating risks. For example, adopting Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) procurement tools allows businesses to automate, standardize, and integrate processes such as vendor selection and contract negotiations. This reduces source-to-pay time, lowers operational costs, secures sensitive data, and protects critical supply chains from potential security risks.

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SaaS procurement whitepaper

SaaS is a cloud-based, subscription model service tailored to meet the needs of specific industries like healthcare, retail, and automotive. SaaS procurement involves outsourcing parts of the process to companies offering procurement services, security, and software on demand. The rise of SaaS procurement is driven by its cost savings, scalability, flexibility, security, reliability, and collaboration benefits.

However, this shift comes with challenges that must be addressed to harness these technologies fully. A whitepaper titled "Managing the Shift to SaaS Applications" by UST explores how software selection and purchasing are managed through cloud-based SaaS procurement. It covers the challenges, considerations, and opportunities of cloud adoption in procurement, including methods for adapting traditional procedures for effective, secure SaaS management.

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Conclusion

Cybercrime is accelerating, exposing organizations, governments, and individuals to increasingly sophisticated malicious schemes. The procurement industry is the foundation of the supply chain, making cybersecurity paramount. Digital-first companies prioritize cybersecurity by leveraging the cloud, automation, and modern security measures, including SaaS procurement, to mitigate cyberattacks and protect the supply chain.

Access our SaaS procurement whitepaper here to learn more about cyber threats in the modern business landscape and how SaaS procurement can optimize your procurement needs with advanced technologies, security methods, tools, and applications.