There is a common plot line that underlies most of the breach stories in the news. Software written by bad guys gets into places on the corporate network where it shouldn’t be. It looks around, finds vulnerable systems, grabs valuable data and transmits it off the network. The term most commonly used to describe this behavior is Advanced Persistent Threat (APT).   

 Cloud computing technology providers are rapidly improving the effectiveness and efficiency of network security, and what we are seeing is just the beginning. If your business is not already taking advantage of cloud-based security solutions, chances are high you will benefit from this emerging market soon.  

After a massive data breach in 2008, Heartland Payment Systems has been an outspoken advocate of going "back to basics" with cybersecurity strategies. How could this help your enterprise as well?

 When looking at the cyber technology market over the past 15 years, it is evident that the catalyst for cyber evolution was Y2K. Prior to the Y2K frenzy, “cybersecurity” was masked in the systems engineering function, and external threats consisted of hackers looking to leverage free computing capabilities with very little focus on information/data access or network destruction. 

 With the nature of security quickly evolving to encompass both physical and cybersecurity at its very core, software manufacturers and security experts are finding themselves in a precarious situation – balancing between what is required and what is needed. 

No operational discussion can start without a look at budgets, and how organizations plan for, and procure, cybersecurity services and solutions. And who is responsible for that budget?

 JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon said the bank will probably double its $250 million annual computer-security budget within the next five years. 

From an executive-level perspective, the greatest shift in cybersecurity relates to the focus and the responsibility – moving from strictly an “IT issue” to one of a business function. Look no further than the Target breach and the subsequent resignations of the company’s CEO and CIO to see how cybersecurity has escalated to the C-suite. This was unprecedented 15 years ago, when the primary cybersecurity role of IT was information assurance. So why has the philosophy changed?