With recent ransomware attacks on both the University of Miami and the city of Ellensburg in Washington, organizations within municipal districts must take precautions.
As cybercriminals target several community subsets such as education and city agencies, it is increasingly important for municipality entities to identify and stop cybersecurity attacks before they occur. Read on to learn about cybersecurity best practices for municipalities.
Allocate a Cybersecurity Budget
One of the first steps for municipalities to enhance their cybersecurity resilience is to dedicate a budget that allows them to invest in the protections they need. According to the NASCIO Cybersecurity Study published by Deloitte in 2018, approximately half of all states do not have cybersecurity as a line item in their budgets. By allocating a budget towards cybersecurity, you will have available funds for investing in services that fit your needs.
Invest in Cybersecurity To Prevent Extreme Financial Loss
One of the challenges for municipalities may be deciding if and how much to invest in cybersecurity solutions and services. If you are involved in these decisions, stakeholders that are making investment decisions need to understand the financial gravity of cybersecurity — they have a lot to lose if they don’t invest. A 2019 ransomware attack in Baltimore, Maryland generated costs of $18 million, which included remediation, new hardware, and lost or deferred revenue. When you don’t have the right protections in place, financial loss from a cybersecurity breach is detrimental.
Provide Cybersecurity Training for Municipal Employees
As municipalities implement new technologies, they need to ensure that their employees are on board with preventing cybersecurity attacks. One of the best ways to enhance your municipality’s security is to provide security awareness training to your employees. For example, Massachusetts state senator Ryan Fattman recently announced a plan to offer cybersecurity training to over 1,000 municipal employees in his district.
Employees pose one of the biggest threats to the security of your government organization. In fact, 90% of cyberattacks start with a phishing email. If your emails aren’t properly trained to identify phishing attacks, they may succumb to these tactics and put your organization at risk.
Work With a Cybersecurity Expert That Understands Government Needs
Government organizations have specific needs for keeping their users and information secure. Therefore, they need to implement cybersecurity solutions that are tailored to fit their organizational infrastructure. If you are ready to implement a cybersecurity solution, look for a partner that has experience working with government organizations. This will help ensure your solutions are the right fit.
For a limited time, TPx is offering a free 30-minute ransomware evaluation. This free evaluation will identify risks within your organization and will outline ways on how you can decrease your vulnerabilities and improve your security posture. If you are interested in learning more about cybersecurity for your municipality, reach out to TPx for a no-obligation consultation.