A risk assessment report is only the first step in implementing the processes and procedures you need to meet the standards set by regulatory agencies. A risk assessment report will also ensure you’re doing everything to protect your company, client, and employee data. After completing a risk assessment, you need to turn the report into actions that mitigate risk and ensure compliance. Here are the steps to take to implement your risk assessment report.
A risk assessment report sorts threat/vulnerability pairs depending on the amount of risk they pose to an organization and the likelihood of action. While there may be high-risk issues, such as extreme weather, the actual threat may be relatively low.
Particularly in situations where the control to mitigate risk is expensive or complicated, it may not ever make sense for an organization to implement controls to address the threat. Flooding poses a high risk to any server room, but if your servers are located on upper floors and you’re not on a flood plain, there’s no need to take action.
Usually, the most significant risks to an enterprise’s data are from hackers or poorly trained employees who respond to phishing schemes. You should start with the most emergent threat/vulnerability pairs to safeguard your enterprise.
When you get a risk assessment report from a cybersecurity firm, they’ll suggest the necessary controls to mitigate the threat to your enterprise. Organizations must balance the cost and disruption to daily processes with the benefit controls will provide.
Controls often bring additional benefits to an organization outside of addressing a specific threat/vulnerability. Employee training means a more responsive workforce with an advanced understanding of cybersecurity, reducing the burden on your internal IT department.
Similarly, a configured and regulated firewall provides broad protection for an organization.
The decision of which controls to implement––and when––is often based on cost and the potential disruption to an organization’s daily processes. For example, employee training for breach response can disrupt day-to-day operations. However, most organizations conclude the inconvenience is worth it because of the high likelihood of a breach at some point, along with the benefit of swift, incisive responses.
Like employee training, many controls aren’t a one-and-done operation. From firewall monitoring to equipment upgrades, preventing and responding to cybersecurity threats is dynamic and evolving.
One of the most critical aspects of implementation is scheduling ongoing risk assessment, whether through your own IT department or using a cybersecurity firm. Every organization needs regular assessment reframed by new threats and equipment degradation over time.
A yearly assessment ensures you’re not vulnerable due to outdated equipment, inexperienced employees, or updated compliance regulations. The Baran Agency stays current on all regulatory requirements, so your organization can expand into new sectors and ensure ongoing compliance with the Department of Defense as well as federal, state, and city requirements. Our team is experts, so you don’t have to be.
The Baran Agency works with enterprises in both the private sector and the Defense Industrial Base to provide cybersecurity assessments and procedure implementation to meet CMMC standards. Our mission is to empower companies to understand the risks to their data security and provide them with the training and skills to respond to breaches. Get military-grade cybersecurity solutions, whether you need to meet compliance as DoD contractors or protect your clients’ data.
Get started implementing industry-leading cybersecurity when you partner with The Baran Agency for a risk assessment report.
