From Convenience to Collaboration: 5 Unlikely Threats to Cyber Security

Even if your business is protected by the best managed IT support Melbourne has to offer, there are ways for hackers to worm their way in. This point has been proven time and again by attacks carried out against major tech companies. In the second half of 2022 alone, we saw the communications company Twilio and identity and access management giant Okta become victims. Then, of course, there was the Optus scandal. 

In these and other cases, the breaches were made possible by vulnerabilities that are often overlooked. From convenience to collaboration, here are five such vulnerabilities to look out for in your business:

1. Convenience

Unfortunately, the convenience you provide for your employees and customers often extends to unwanted visitors as well. If you don’t demand strong passwords and insist on employees changing them periodically, this easygoing attitude will make it far easier for hackers to find their way into your system. The same is true for most other security measures. Unfortunately, in the modern world, we have to go through a little inconvenience in order to ensure our assets and data remain safe. 

2. Burnout

Tired, stressed, and overworked employees are far more likely to make silly mistakes like dropping their keycard or clicking a link in a text message. The Twilio hack mentioned above was made possible when an employee clicked a link in a message that looked like it came from their IT department. 

The Twilio employee wasn’t necessarily burned out or stressed, and mistakes like this can occur even when you’re on top of your game. However, in general, you can reduce the risk of such incidents by ensuring your team is operating under fair conditions that support their mental health. 

3. Optimism bias

Optimism is considered a virtue by most people, but it can come with some nasty consequences. If you assume everything will always work out for the best, you may fail to prepare for the worst. 

This assumption that the bad things you hear about in the world will never happen to you is called “optimism bias.” If you let it seep into your cyber security strategy, you’re setting yourself up for trouble. Instead, work from the premise that you’re just as likely to be targeted by hackers as Optus was, and plan accordingly. 

4. A siloed approach to cyber security 

If you think of cyber security as the sole responsibility of your managed service provider or in-house IT department, you’re creating another form of risk for your business. This kind of approach leaves other departments ill-informed and unprepared for any attempted hacks that may occur. 
A better approach is to keep your entire company in the loop on cyber security measures. This includes providing regular training to ensure your team can recognise a social engineering attack and take the right action to ensure it’s not successful. 

5. Collaboration

As important as it is for your team to be able to work effectively together, collaborative efforts can create exploitable weaknesses that put your business at risk. This is particularly pertinent for companies operating with a remote or hybrid workforce. Every app and device used by a company employee is another potential in-road for hackers. And the cyber security measures people have at home are generally far less robust than those deployed in the average workplace. 

Keep these vulnerabilities in mind when planning the defence measures you have in place for your business. While you can never be 100% safe, you’ll greatly improve your chances of avoiding a data breach if you cover these elements in your cyber security strategy.