Cyberattacks happen every day, affecting thousands of businesses and organizations. Federal governments are also impacted, with several agencies reporting multiple phishing and malware attempts daily.
Government agencies must arm themselves with security solutions to ensure that state secrets and other valuable information are kept safe. They should learn how to respond to the latest threats and quickly recover from malicious attacks. While protecting data can be challenging, the consequences of failure are even more disastrous.
While there are many security systems in the market, ultimately, they have the same purpose: to help users gain network visibility and track suspicious behavior to prevent potential cyberattacks.
If your government agency needs assistance updating its security strategy, here are popular cybersecurity technologies that might address its needs:
End-To-End Analytics
Modern government cybersecurity relies on behavioral analytics to identify suspicious actors and block them to prevent breaches and data theft. End-to-end analytics solutions collect and compare data across multiple network environments to stop threats from accessing network traffic, files, and devices.
Analytic systems are getting more intelligent due to continuous developments in machine learning and artificial technology. Soon, innovative AI solutions should be able to deliver complete visibility for proactive threat detection and real-time threat assessment and response.
Next-Generation Firewalls
Traditional firewalls might be unable to identify, let alone block, the latest variants of cyberattacks. Upgrading to next-generation firewalls can significantly boost network security, visibility, and application control.
Identity and Access Management (IAM)
Previously, IT teams had to set up employees with unique access information for every system they needed for work. This repetitive process is incredibly time-consuming and tiresome, leading to operational inefficiency.
Identity and access management speeds up the process through digital certificates and public key infrastructure (PKI) solutions. Moreover, these solutions provide an extra layer of security since employees can only reach systems they are granted access.
Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS)
Intrusion detection systems, also known as intrusion prevention systems (IPS), are growing more popular in government networks. These technologies can protect against several security threats, including malware, spyware, worms, and viruses.
An IDS constantly monitors network systems for irregularities. Once it identifies a threat, it classifies the attack and applies the necessary actions to mitigate it and improve computer security.
Anti-Malware Software
The primary purpose of malware is to look for vulnerabilities in the user's network system, especially in operating systems, browsers, and applications. Anti-malware software detects bad traffic and offers IP blacklisting to prevent unauthorized access and data loss.
Most anti-malware software comes integrated with anti-virus and anti-spyware capabilities for more robust filtering security.
Mobile Device Management (MDM)
MDM solutions allow network administrators to apply, monitor and implement security configurations on the users' mobile devices. This technology benefits remote work setups where users are more vulnerable to cyberattacks due to working in a home network.
By applying MDM on agency-approved devices, management can keep company information secure without physically monitoring the user's activity.
A Necessary Investment
Cybersecurity is a necessary investment for all organizations that rely on data, and government agencies are no exception. Protecting government agencies from cyberattacks is not easy, but a critical one considering how much federal information has gone digital.
Fortunately, technological advancements provide security strategies that allow governments to strengthen cybersecurity and improve overall operations.
