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IT Security and IT Compliance: Differentiation and Convergence
What is IT Security? And how do you define IT Compliance? How are they similar? Where do they differ? And why do they need to combine in one solution called IT Security AND Compliance?
It’s essential to understand the differences between these two elements that make up IT Security and Compliance in order to appreciate the full benefits of the software that unifies both.
IT Compliance and IT Security is all about protecting your IT infrastructure from cyber threats like malware, hacking, and data theft, and the other nightmare scenarios of a business world that is perpetually plugged online. IT Compliance is setting the baseline for the security measures you will implement. IT Security looks forward to the future and prepares your company for the kinds of attacks that you might not have anticipated yet, but which you need to.
Winning the War on Cyber Security
The Japanese once defined doing business as similar to fighting a war that you have to win. It’s a winner-take-all scenario: either you or your enemies have to defeat the other to conquer the territory. Cyber threats are like the missiles that your combatant throws at you. IT Compliance means creating a defense perimeter stocked up with anti-aircraft weaponry that can neutralize those weapons before they even enter your airspace. But this is only the minimum requirement to protect yourself; you have to keep on studying the enemy’s tactics and use the research to boost your own arsenal in case they launch something totally out from left field, but which is dangerous like an invisible nuclear bomb. That Special Operations and Research Department that prepares you for those unforeseen scenarios is IT Security.
Many companies think that IT Compliance is enough to protect themselves from unruly hackers or pesky viruses. But traditional defenses like IPS, firewalls, and Web gateways are rendered easily vulnerable to more daring, aggressive cyber robbers who are determined to steal your valuable data. Cyber threats are not just increasing, but they are evolving. IT Security is the system that keeps you informed of these new dangers and equips your IT infrastructure to handle them when the time comes.
IT Compliance is the present; IT Security is the future. You can’t have one without the other. As this presentation will show, readiness for the here and now is not enough. Yes, you need to secure your present IT organizational set-up and the people who run them, but it is imperative that you plan ahead and continue to strengthen them for various online criminal scenarios that might not even have been invented.
Think of IT Compliance and Security as the entire might of your Armed Forces with a Special Operations Team that combs the mountains and explores the depths of the sea to study how the enemy will move next and prevent them before they launch the first shot.
The Business Advantages that IT Security and Compliance Provides your Company
IT Compliance and Security brings significant positive changes to the organization and its overall business performance precisely because it secures the various vital aspects of its infrastructure from attack. The importance of this capabilities cannot be overemphasized. Cyber threats can do irreparable damage to a company by leaking confidential data, disrupting operations, and damaging entire layers of equipment. Work slows down or stops, deliverables are not fulfilled, customers are left dissatisfied or disgruntled, and sales declines. Worst of all, the sacred bond of trust between company and client is breached.
Think about it. Would you still do business with a company that had an insecure paywall? Would you put your money in a bank that suffered the loss of stored recorded information caused by a virus? Would you continue purchasing your groceries from this online store after a disrupted had caused it to delay its deliveries three times in a row?
The obvious answer is NO.
Now let’s look at the reverse which will give you a YES answer.
Once word gets out that you have a safe, secure, and practically impenetrable IT system, which will be proven regularly over time, you have better chances of keeping great and loyal customers. This strong foundation is what your business needs in order to grow.
How does IT Compliance and Security contribute to your business success?
Customer engagement is the crucial bridge that can bring in added revenues. That’s probably why it’s located in the mid-point section of our analysis above (See fig. 1). According to one Gallup poll, customers who are fully engaged bring 37% more annual revenue to their preferred company than customers who are disengaged.
Those are the customers you want to keep and the numbers you want to reach.
Now let’s study how IT Compliance and Security does this for you.
Reduce Cyber Threats and Protect your Investment
How much do you save your company if you implement an IT Compliance and Security solution? That’s probably best answered if by looking at what it can cost you if you expose yourself to risks by not having one. According to Forbes, one out of five U.S. small-to-medium-sized companies have suffered a security breach that cost them a huge amount in dollars for downtime, lost productivity, replacement of damaged equipment, and loss of revenue. Studies by Security Intelligence have shown that an organization that had been successfully infiltrated by a cyber attack experienced a 46 percent drop in profit the following quarter. That’s almost half of your revenue that could have been spent on operations or placed securely in your corporate bank account as happily welcome surplus funding.
How does IT Compliance and Security literally save you from this massive headache which, as experienced by damaged companies, can cost you years and millions of dollars to recover from?
Reduced risks mean lesser damages which means lesser repair time and costs, which all translate to considerable savings.
Build Trust and Increase Customer Engagement
IT Compliance and Security does not just mitigate risks to your system, but it optimizes their performance and makes operations more efficient. Business continuity does not just prevail, but it can become a platform for improving standards further and raising your organization’s competitive edge. Leaders and employees who can rest in the knowledge that their systems are secure and are functioning at optimal levels have greater confidence and have a more positive mindset to raise standards of performance. More projects from other clients can be acquired, teams can be pushed to shorten deadlines without sacrificing on quality, and sales targets as well as profit projections can be elevated.
Your customers will grow to rely that your word is your bond, that you deliver on expectations. Contracts are met, deliverables are fulfilled, and projects are accomplished on time. Their satisfaction, though, could also increase as they see improvement in your performance. Their trust of your organization grows. They become even more engaged and might even become your unofficial ambassadors to their colleagues and communities, which can mean more business for you down the road.
How does IT Compliance and Security heighten performance and streamline operations, cutting out the fat to make you even more competitive?
A fully functioning IT system can heighten the kind of customer experience that will make your client want to stay with you for the immediate and the long-term. In studies done by Neosperience, 70 percent of your customers will stay with you if they believe that you are better than the competition. And for every two percent of them who you do retain, you save another ten percent in operational cost. Perform at full peak to their satisfaction and you are looking at 350 percent in potential savings!
Compliance Paves the Way for Business Growth
Retaining customer growth is one thing, but scalability is another. You may draw in a huge number of customers and might even expand your market share — but is your system equipped to scale? Can it handle the increasing load of customer demand? Can the new orders be sustained by your customer service? Can your databases remain secure even as fresh information comes streaming in from new markets, welcoming communities, and unusual demographics?
Let’s go back to our war analogy a few pages above. You are beating the enemy, capturing territory and recruiting more soldiers. But do you have enough resources to provide these fighters the uniforms and weapons they need to march in your army? Do you have enough materials to build defense perimeters and bunkers to secure those territories?
IT Security and Compliance can help you to scale through one of its little-known but vital components known as Operational Intelligence. It will monitor the masses of people coming in to your fortress, track their activity and consumption, and measure that against your resources.
In short, IT Security and Compliance will keep your operations running at maximum while informing you on what still needs to be done to keep up with your winning momentum and increase your market share and revenues.
Here’s how:
Operational Intelligence will not just help you meet your targets – it will spur you to keep up with your momentum.
Strengthening your Systems to Secure your Future
IT Compliance and Security is a highly effective tool that can defend your company from present and evolving computer attacks. At the same time, it is a valuable instrument that can help heighten your corporate performance and make your industry position more robust. Smooth and unimpeded business continuity can save you from costly defects that will entail an expensive repair job. Reduction of operational waste and downtime can also add to your savings. Finally, access to smart data can guide you and your leaders in making wise and informed business decisions.