Technological advancements and the acceleration of digital transformation mean that industry experts are bracing themselves against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats targeting organisations across various sectors. Factors such as the proliferation of non-human identities powered by IoT devices, cloud adoption, and remote work arrangements are set to present new attack vectors for cybercriminals.
“Growing interconnectedness of systems and the increasing reliance on data make organisations more vulnerable to data breaches, ransomware attacks, and insider threats,” explained Mohammad Ismail, Vice President of Delinea in the META region. Policy sprawl, where the number of policy settings dictating individual asset access rights can lead to increased complexity and security vulnerabilities, further exacerbates these trends.
To stay abreast of robust cloud security measures, Delinea recently acquired Authomize, an ITDR capability, and Fastpath, an IGA solution, to help organisations implement robust cloud security strategies effectively. By combining Authomize’s ITDR tool and Fastpath’s IGA tool with Delinea’s existing suite of security solutions, Delinea enables organisations to build a comprehensive approach to securing their cloud environments.
“We advocate for implementing strong PAM and access controls to ensure that only authorised users and devices have access to cloud resources,” noted Ismail. “By adopting robust data protection measures to safeguard sensitive information and regularly auditing and monitoring data access and usage, organisations can stay ahead of emerging threats.
It’s important to remember that limiting privileges does not need to limit productivity. Businesses that adopt PAM solutions can secure access to on-premise and cloud environments, even for remote workers and third parties.
Mohammad Ismail
“Working with partners like Delinea helps an organisation to stay ahead of emerging threats and strengthen their cybersecurity posture to mitigate risks.”
Challenges and opportunities
The importance of Identity Management has grown significantly with the rise of remote work. Thanks to rapid digital transformation that offers organisations significant advantages, such as increased agility, operational efficiency, broader market reach and the capability to deliver personalised customer experiences. Amidst these advancements, organisations must be mindful of the following challenges:
- New challenges are emerging as businesses navigate through shifting their infrastructure into the cloud and into SaaS products. In addition, CISO’s are dealing with a huge increase in the number of identities, applications and data that needs to be managed on a daily basis.
- The battle against ransomware in 2024 requires organisations to put in place a comprehensive and multi-layered defence strategy.
- As their main goals changed, cyber criminals modified their tactics and moved away from using email as a preferred attack vector, targeting cloud and compromised applications instead. By taking a more covert approach, attackers can remain undetected longer and gain continuous access to systems and data, enabling them to ramp up the damage when they choose.
- The changing strategies and tactics in ransomware attacks require a layered approach to security that mitigates the risk of unauthorised access, even when credentials are compromised. It also shows the critical role privileged access plays in overall cybersecurity postures.
Solutions that need to be implemented
According to Ismail, the following are the solutions that need to be implemented in the finance and banking sector and other verticals:
- Privileged Access Management (PAM) – investment in this is essential. PAM enforces password best practices and enhances defences by restricting and monitoring access to critical systems and applications, reducing the potential for malicious actors to exploit high-level credentials. Multi-factor Authentication (MFA) adds a layer of security as part of PAM, mitigating the risk of unauthorised access even with compromised credentials.
- Investments in incident response plans are increasing as organisations recognise the critical importance of incident response strategies. These plans are designed to navigate and mitigate the impact of cyber incidents effectively and are constantly being reviewed as attack methods evolve.
- Identity Governance and Administration (IGA) ensures secure access control by centrally managing user identities, permissions, and privileges, reducing the risk of unauthorised access and enhancing overall security posture within an organisation.
- IT and cybersecurity teams are increasingly recognising the importance of PAM in preventing ransomware attacks, but the broader IT community needs to be educated.
Compliance and competitive edge
When asked how Delinea ensures compliance with various regulatory frameworks while maintaining a competitive edge in the market, Ismail said, “We work closely with organisations across all industries to put in place strong cybersecurity fundamentals as this is the best way to reduce risk.
“Following best practices such as the Principle of Least Privilege to limit the number and scope of admin rights means that if attackers gain entry to your IT environment, their ability to install payloads, exfiltrate data and cause damage can be limited,” he added.
Delinea recognises the importance of collaboration and strategic partnerships in the technology industry. By integrating with complementary solutions, Delinea becomes an integral part of an organisation’s overall security strategy.
Emerging trends in the cybersecurity landscape
- Surge in cyber insurance
- AI and ML promise to streamline compliance efforts
- Passkeys and passwordless solutions surge in usage
- Artificial intelligence use by enterprises surges
- Nation-states accelerate cyber espionage, blurring the lines between traditional and cyber attacks
