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Technology directly impacts the functionality and management of businesses in today’s society. With the ever-growing digital world, it is crucial for businesses both big and small to be aware of any risks that may affect critical data and online assets within their network. Data is the backbone to the success of any company and can hold extreme value, whether it be employee personal identifiable information, company product intellect, or financial details. Ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of all organizational data is imperative to the growth and success of any business, which is why cybersecurity awareness training is vital. A recent survey taken by the U.S. Small Business Administration, identified that 88% of small businesses believe they are vulnerable to a cyber-attack and are unsure what prevention methods to deploy. A simple yet highly effective action that small to medium size businesses can take to drastically reduce the risk of cyber threats and attacks is to implement a security awareness training program within the organization. Education is key and will provide employees with the necessary tools and skills required to successfully identify and respond to a cyber threat or attack if one were to occur. The cybersecurity awareness training that

Cyber threats and attacks are increasing not only in number, but in size and complexity. Businesses both big and small are affected and need to keep in mind the importance of maintaining the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the information they possess while simultaneously keeping attackers at bay. Cybersecurity can be tricky, even for the seasoned Information Technology (IT) professional and relying solely on those versed in IT won’t solve underlying cybersecurity issues Businesses need to look at additional options when shopping for outside vendors and include outsourced cybersecurity vendors in the discussion. This additional aspect of outsourced cybersecurity would add protection to the data and the network infrastructure of a business. Cybersecurity-as-a-service is the solution and can save businesses time and money if utilized properly. This concept is an outsourced service provided by a third-party vendor which solely specializes in the monitoring, protection, and response of different types of vulnerabilities and attacks on the network or systems. Traditional IT services and vendors tend to focus on the management of user accounts, network infrastructure and hardware, service patches, and even end-user support in some cases. The main difference between cybersecurity and IT is the continuous protection of data and critical

Cybersecurity for non-profit organizations is often not as robust as for commercial organizations, and, therefore, strengthening cybersecurity for non-profit organizations remains a point of concern for the board of directors. The board is expected to implement cybersecurity best practices to mitigate and manage the risks, but they must also ensure that the tone at the top is set correctly. Non-profit organizations work for public or social benefits and rely on donations from their volunteers and benefactors. They also have sensitive and confidential data of others in their possession, the same way as a commercial organization. These scenarios immediately raise some potential cybersecurity issues, for example, payment security, security of cardholder data, data privacy, data sovereignty, etc., to name a few. Hence, it is an essential obligation of the board to adopt cybersecurity best practices for non-profits, device cybersecurity strategies, and implement cybersecurity frameworks to safeguard the organizational information assets. They must also ensure the security of the data at rest, data in motion, and data in transit. Cybersecurity Risks and Challenges Facing Non-Profits A significant portion of non-profit organizations’ budgets is focused on the welfare of the cause they support. It is difficult for them to spend money on other

Cyberattacks hit nonprofits every day. From local organizations to international ones, like the United Nations, hackers are always trying to benefit from vulnerable systems. Given that nonprofits store valuable financial and personal information about their donors, their databases have become an attractive and lucrative target for ill-intended users. This blog post will introduce you the latest cyberattack trends and walk you through ways to prevent security threats. Top 3 Common Types of Cyberattacks: SQL Injection SQL injections is code-based attack that give ill-intended users the ability to read, access, and potentially administrate sensitive data from the database. Hackers bypass security measures and use their newly gained privileges to add, delete, and update records in a database. How can SQL injection attacks put your nonprofit at risk? The most common risk of an SQL injection is the theft of sensitive user data. Personal information from your staff, volunteers, and partners, such as login credentials, emails, and personal identifiable information (PII) can be sold on the dark web. In the event of a successful SQL injection, your users and operations could be at risk.   Rootkits Rootkits are hidden software that provides privileged access to a computer. Once a computer gets infected

Nonprofits should take steps to protect their information assets from cybercriminals by hardening their IT systems. A significant number of cyberattacks begin with a hacker scanning the internet looking for insecure networks that may provide them with a place to start digging. This is similar to a burglar going from house to house, knocking and trying to open each door. If they find a door that’s open, they go inside and start digging for valuable items to steal. Many cybercriminals work the same way. They are digging and scanning the internet, looking for organizations with unlocked doors. Network-hardening increases your security by reducing the number of flaws and back doors on your systems which could be exploited by hackers. This is done by removing unnecessary programs, applications, accounts, ports, or permissions across your network. Network-hardening is especially important for nonprofits because they deal with a considerable amount of sensitive data that they collect and use on an ongoing basis. Keeping this in mind, here are three main categories and threats that nonprofits should be concerned about: Your organization’s reputation Given the nonprofit’s operation is built upon the generosity of others, they rely heavily on the positive public perception and confidence

This Guide to Cybersecurity for Nonprofits will give you a broader perspective on how cybersecurity can contribute to your mission and operations. In 2020, Blackbaud, a cloud computing provider that serves nonprofits and charities, was the target of a multi-million dollar cyberattack. Hundreds of organizations worldwide had bank account information and user credentials accessed as a result of the breach. The South Carolina-based organization has faced damages estimated at 3.6 million and two dozen lawsuits in the United States and Canada. Founded in 1983, Blackbaud is a well-established organization and the perfect example to show that no organization is safe from being a target of cybercrime. How Can Cybersecurity Help You Achieve your Mission? At Makaye InfoSec, we know you strive to be a courageous, effective leader, fighting to drive your mission forward. Unfortunately, the amazing work you do for society can often be overshadowed by cybercriminals. Just imagine: what if your organization was hacked? Criminals get their hands on the valuable information of your donors, volunteers, and clients, which they then threaten to sell on the Deep Web. The only solution is to negotiate with them. You pay $10k to the hackers. You may think everything is back to

Security awareness training has become a must for nonprofit organizations. With cyberattacks on the rise, nonprofits have become a prime target for ill-intended users because they store valuable information and often lack the cybersecurity expertise to lock their data.

The following Cybersecurity Checklist for Nonprofits is a great first step to better protect your organization. Nonprofit organizations face constant challenges in developing a tailored cybersecurity action plan which addresses the difficulty in managing sensitive information and keeping their staff up-to-date with the latest cybersecurity trends.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic started back in 2020, we have seen several cybersecurity professionals banding together to form cybersecurity defense groups, focusing primarily on providing free protection to healthcare nonprofit at risk, for-profit organizations, and the critical infrastructure that is needed to combat security threats. An example of such a group is the CTI League. They’re a volunteer group of cybersecurity experts dedicated to defending and neutralizing cyberattacks targeting the healthcare industry. Groups like the CTI League are of extreme importance, even in 2022. A recent survey by IBM, for example, indicated that there has been a significant increase in COVID-19 related spam. Common attacks that we have seen here at Makaye infoSec include phishing emails, ransomware, malicious domains, and denial-of-service attacks. Ill-intended users continue to capitalize on the current situation to steal data, make money, and compromise nonprofit at risk operations. The last-minute shift that organizations had to make to remote work back in 2020 opened new loopholes for cybercriminals to exploit, resulting in a significant increase in cyberattacks. The most prominent attack happened in October of 2021, after an unauthorized user gained access to Planned Parenthood LA’s networks and 400,000 records. The information that cybercriminals accessed had personal