One of the biggest challenges facing organizations today is how to keep their systems secure in the face of constantly evolving threats. The importance of keeping systems up-to-date and fostering a strong internal work culture that emphasizes cybersecurity awareness and best practices cannot be understated.
Gone are the days when organizations could rely on monthly updates to keep their systems secure. Optional yet critical updates are now being released every day and need to be implemented promptly to ensure that optimum security and functionality remain stable for all users. Though necessary, this rapid production of updates has its downfalls, and in some cases impair security. To mitigate this risk, organizations need to have the ability to roll back updates within one to two hours across all systems they manage.
The recent ZLoader campaign highlights the importance of keeping systems up to date with the latest security patches. This campaign exploited a vulnerability in Microsoft’s signature verification process that was fixed back in 2013, but many devices likely still don’t have the fix enabled. The attackers were able to modify a legitimate system file to plant their malware. The file appeared legitimate because it was signed by Microsoft.
This vulnerability represents a difficult scenario to defend against, as it requires a fix that is so obscure that few would even know how to apply it. Organizations need to be vigilant in ensuring that all security patches are applied promptly to all their systems.
But keeping systems up to date is only part of the solution. Organizations need to have a robust incident response plan in place to quickly and effectively respond to any security breaches when they do occur. This plan should include steps to identify the source of the breach, isolate affected systems, and restore services as quickly as possible.
A collaborative approach to your company’s information technology can help you identify and address vulnerabilities in your systems, ensuring that you have the necessary security measures in place to protect your company and your customers.