As the global economy prepares for a potential recession, companies are actively laying off thousands of workers to reduce overhead spending and maintain business continuity. However, the cost of managing large IT security teams is already a prohibitive obstacle to developing a robust cybersecurity posture; an economic downturn spreads an organization’s IT team thin, forcing inexperienced employees to handle cybersecurity concerns. This challenge typically results in fragmented procedures.

Unfortunately, the ongoing economic downturn affects critical IT and cybersecurity functions, such as proactive threat detection and modeling, incident response and recovery, and risk assessments.

This article discusses how organizations can leverage a reputable virtual chief information security officer (vCISO) to augment downsizing processes by bringing the knowledge, expertise, and leadership needed to analyze risk, prioritize endpoint protection, and maintain business continuity.

Cyber Risks Associated with Staff Layoffs

Organizations worldwide are cautious about the potential of an economic recession. It also alters how companies consider security risks, especially insider threats from layoffs.

The risks associated with staff layoffs are as follows:

Data loss – The relationship between employees and the organization can become sour if there are layoffs. Former employees who still have access to the data could potentially delete, or otherwise corrupt files that they know are essential to the company’s operation, either purposefully or unintentionally.

Compliance violations – Organizations’ security posture is significantly improved by including regulatory compliance frameworks as an integral component. However, former staff that still have access to sensitive information could destroy it or release it in a manner that violates significant compliance regulations.

Breaches of confidentiality – In today’s competitive business environment, some organizations may illegally recruit employees from rivals to gain access to sensitive information. An ex-employee with continued access to confidential data may disclose it to a competitor.

Ruined reputation – If customers lose faith in your company because of a data breach,  they will not hesitate to turn to a different service provider. Surprisingly, the average total cost of a data breach is estimated to be $3.92 million. Therefore, a seemingly insignificant action, such as staff layoffs, can have significant consequences for your company financially and reputationally.

The Benefits of vCISO Services For Staff Augmentation

Staff augmentation has become the ideal solution for satisfying short- and long-term staffing needs to ensure that organizations always meet IT deadlines during the economic recession. Therefore, the decision to utilize  vCISO services to augment your current staff offers several critical advantages, including

• Reduced risks and investment
• Improved efficiency and achievement
• Lowering capital costs
• Reducing operational costs
• Accelerating time-to-market
• Better resource availability
• More flexibility and scalability
• Increased customer satisfaction

A vCISO is worth considering as a solution for projects of any size and complexity, offering the adaptability and visibility required to support business objectives. In addition, our vCISO provides insightful daily reports, designs and implements the entire security program, and provides expert security management at a fraction of the expense.

Considerations Before Getting Started with a vCISO 

The decision to introduce a vCISO into your computing environment can be overwhelming. Often, organizations are concerned that they will need to orient a vCISO to the complexities of their environment. Thankfully, the vCISOs at GoldSky Security are trusted experts within the industry; our cybersecurity leadership personnel have collaborated with multiple organizations in the government and private sector to shepherd security programs during some of the most challenging economic times.

Below are some steps your organization should consider before getting started with vCISO services:

1. Understand economic outlook (budget): An economic downturn introduces a rigorous budgeting corporate culture, especially for small to midsize businesses with limited resources. Although hiring a vCISO cuts cybersecurity expenses by half, organizations must possess enough financial muscle to equip the vCISO with the necessary tools to secure the environment immediately.
2. Define operational scope: With limited financial resources, your company must operate within a well-defined scope to achieve its operational goals. Therefore, it behooves your team to understand what areas of the cybersecurity landscape your organization is lacking. If such details are unavailable, a vCISO’s risk assessment expertise can help identify and prioritize high-risk areas for mitigation.
3. Measure impact: Hiring a vCISO is critical when operating within tight budgetary and talent constraints. Therefore, developing a metric to help tell the story about the transition of the threat landscape (typically from the current state to the desired state) is essential to understanding the level of effort required.
4. Highlight specific timeline: While cybersecurity operations are an ongoing business process, organizations must meet some key deliverables to fulfill contractual agreements and maintain business functions, such as regulatory compliance and threat assessments. Having a specific timeline or deadline allows a vCISO to tackle tasks in their order of priority proactively.

Conclusion

A  vCISO is an augmented security expert who reviews your network’s security and creates strategic security maturity models to strengthen your organization’s cybersecurity posture. In addition, the vCISO advises you on best practices and keeps an eye on your security operations during the economic recession. Our vCISO experts at GoldSky will assess your organization’s strengths, weaknesses, and potential danger zones. When you utilize our vCISO services, we’ll deploy a skilled professional to oversee your security plan, finances, security threats, and compliance measures.