Towerwall's InfoSec Blog

Stay on top of account management and assess staff security skills with CIS Controls 16 and 17 You can have the most secure system in the world, but hackers will always seek out the path of least resistance. When your defenses are good, the weak link is often your employees. Data breaches are most likely to be the result of employee error or an inside job, according to the ACC Foundation: State of Cybersecurity Report. It’s good to focus on firewalls, malware defenses and data protection, butfalse

Once again, the Information Security Summit hosted by Towerwall and MassBay was a resounding success. Hundreds of attendees and vendors participated in diverse data security panels and networked with industry leaders and peers. The Summit opened with Michelle Drolet, CEO of Towerwall, and Shamsi Moussav, Computer Science Professor at MassBay Community College, presenting scholarships to MassBay students Kirk Barge and Julius Newton. Michelle Drolet said,

Teaching the workforce to create a heightened state of awareness. It's time for the business world to toughen up on security. The threat from cybercriminals is pervasive. Successful attacks on financial institutions, large retailers, and even government bodies, are all too common. There's a reason that the Worldwide Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community report, released in February this year, put Cyber at the head of the list of global threats. But the targets are not alwaysfalse

Building a solid security program takes time. Every organization is different. It's very important to assess your technology, and consider both internal and external threats. An assessment will reveal vulnerabilities. The remediation process will help you take full advantage of your existing security assets and point you at any gaps that need filling. Even once your defenses are in place, vigilance is an ongoing requirement because new threats are emerging all the time. In the face of ourfalse

The information security profession, which evolved largely in reaction to threats, is now paying the price of an entire “missing generation.” Companies are challenged finding pros with the combination of business and technical savvy that is needed to combat growing threats. Compounding this problem, educational institutions are not graduating enough students with the necessary skills or experience for entry-level positions. It is estimated that between 300,000 and 1,000,000 currentfalse

Despite all the news about hackers infiltrating major corporations, most businesses continue to leave themselves woefully unprotected. Some surveys estimate more than 70% of businesses perform vulnerability tests on less than 10% of their cloud, mobile and web applications. A majority also confess they have been hacked at least once in the last two years. While most large businesses have begun application vulnerability testing, there is still a long way to go. After all, you are only asfalse

My clients often confuse scanning and penetration testing. Organisations should be conducting both external vulnerability scans and penetration tests. If you are storing or transmitting data on the Internet, particularly sensitive data such as credit card details, then quarterly scanning is required to validate your PCI compliance. You also need to conduct a penetration test at least once a year. These are the minimum requirements to remain compliant; it is prudent to scan and test more often.false