In the previous post, we looked at the importance of GRC(Governance Risk and Compliance), its origins, and the critical role it plays in any cybersecurity implementation, especially for small and medium businesses. It is not too straightforward for this category of companies because on the one hand they often do not have the budget to bring on heavyweight consultants or a full-fledged in-house team and yet they are -on the contrary- the most vulnerable to cyber threats and attacks.

Today we go on further to expand on the 5 key pillars a business owner needs to be aware of when considering upgrading their businesses to be cyber safety compliant.

1. Risk Mitigation

One of the biggest hazards facing any business today is an inadequate cybersecurity plan and implementation. Businesses of all sizes and in all sectors are constantly at risk from cyberattacks. Your IT and security teams can collaborate with your GRC function to comprehend the scope of your cybersecurity framework and record its advantages and disadvantages. Technically speaking, you can describe the many cybersecurity threats you’ve found, and GRC can add a business-related perspective to list more threats. A thorough understanding of enterprise risk is developed through the integration of these two levels of cognition.

The company can then decide whether to invest in, for example, a new firewall or managed service or decide to take no action and risk the possibility of a successful cyberattack. The conversation at the executive level alters when cybersecurity is framed as a business decision to reduce risk rather than a “techie issue” that IT wants to spend money on. Together, the IT and GRC teams can assist the business in developing a thorough understanding of the risks associated with inadequate cybersecurity and gaining support for a strategy to mitigate those risks.

2. Legal, Regulatory, and Business Compliance

As was mentioned, regulatory standards and compliance regimes are more complex and burdensome than ever, and things aren’t going to get any better. A committed GRC team can look into the constantly shifting compliance landscape and alert the IT team early on to emerging changes, giving them time to adapt. Building a solid working connection with GRC will ultimately save time because they are aware of the reporting and compliance needs. IT systems ought to be created with compliance in mind so that reporting artifacts (such as reports, audit summaries, and the like) are produced as a natural byproduct of cybersecurity, as opposed to as an afterthought.

Not working in a regulated sector? You still have to answer for your actions. Think about the underwriting procedure when obtaining cybersecurity insurance for your business. Consider the research a potential business partner would conduct before partnering with you. Many of the dozens of questions and attestations you’ll see on the application form are the norm for regulatory agencies. Your cybersecurity strategy will be more thoroughly viewed if these challenges have been considered, recorded, and addressed.

3. Internal and external audit support

GRC can serve as a company’s internal self-audit. To ensure that the house is kept in order, mature businesses would go beyond their own procedures and standards to provide “evidence” or audit documents to its GRC and auditors. The GRC may assist in creating a workable and suitable compliance structure that helps keep everyone on the same page, from documenting that patching is carried out as planned to confirming that incident response testing has been conducted. As already talked about, it is better to design security controls so that audit artifacts and documentation are produced throughout the security process rather than as an afterthought. Comparing automated reporting to manual or ad hoc processing, the effort and error are significantly reduced.

Internal Audit as a Pillar of GRC (image credit: rawpixel)

4. Data Privacy

Your GRC staff should be knowledgeable about how privacy laws are constantly evolving. For instance, in Canada, a corporation must overcome federal restrictions, provincial rules, and unique rules on specific sorts of data (such as health information) in order to conduct business. The GDPR in the EU has altered the business environment in and with Europe, and it is spurring more change in numerous other countries across the world. GRC may assist your IT staff to make sure that the proper safeguards are in place to protect your customer and employee data, including adequate protection, geographic storage, recording, reporting, etc. These insights will enable you to strengthen your defenses right away and make informed decisions about IT in the future.

5. Response to Incidents

Your incident response planning and response programs will also heavily rely on the GRC team. GRC can be crucial in incident response that doesn’t include the technical specifics under IT’s control, whether they’re assisting with the coordination of crisis management tabletop testing exercises or managing contacts and filings with regulators in the case of an actual breach.

GRC: It’s Advantageous to Businesses

If none of these arguments have struck a chord with you, take into account the fact that GRC is simply smart business. Making wise choices, staying away from unnecessary risk, and abiding by the law is crucial for treating your clients and employees with respect. And, to put it too simply, that is the essence of GRC.

If you have an in-house team already then maybe it’s time to shift the subject if your connection with your internal GRC team isn’t great. You may more effectively and thoroughly protect your data and reputation by using them as an extension of your IT and security staff.

Otherwise, get in touch with us for a Free 5 minute consultation with Daakyi’s dedicated experts. We periodically do free ISO 27001 audits for SMBs, Subscribe to our channels, follow us on LinkedIn and other social media channels and you’ll be notified to participate with your company.

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Daakyi Consultancy over the years has been helping such mid-range businesses to have decent and world-class cybersecurity enforcement, using the concept of a proprietary lean GRC implementation. We however see it as our contribution to society to offer good free advice for small businesses and share valuable actionable nuggets which can be put into action while considering the installation of a full-blown cybersecurity machinery.

GRC, or Governance, Risk and Compliance is becoming more and more crucial to many firms’ day-to-day operations. In this article, we’ll talk about GRC and how it can support your cybersecurity system.

After a succession of high-profile business bankruptcies necessitated the need for better internal controls and monitoring in the early 2000s, the idea of a formal GRC emerged. GRC operations are likely the focus of entire departments at larger companies, especially those in tightly regulated industries like utilities, finance, and insurance; smaller companies may only have one or two persons filling this position, sometimes not even full-time.

However, more and more businesses are considering the advantages of having a recognized GRC role in-house as regulatory duties for organizations of all sizes expand. But what does GRC mean in reality? Let’s examine the abbreviation:

Simply described, governance is the process of making decisions. What factors are taken into account when a business decision is made? Are the choices made adequately in line with the mission or objectives of the organization? A meaningful foundation for a company’s activities is provided by governance.

Risk refers to elements that might endanger a company. Threats from the outside or the inside might be classified as risks. They might be insignificant or existential. They could be things you can control or things related to the environment that could occur whether or not you want them to. Not all risk is negative; businesses will have a “risk appetite” that determines how much danger they are ready to take on in different business areas. Entering a new industry, for instance, could be risky, but the benefits might outweigh the dangers.

The area of compliance includes legal and regulatory matters. The norms of conduct that an organization must abide by to exist may be established by governments, industry authorities, or even third parties.

Any organization’s security and IT operations staff will find resonance in reviewing these definitions via a cybersecurity lens. For instance:

1. Risk Mitigation
2. Legal, Regulatory, and Business Compliance
3. Internal and External Audit support
4. Data Privacy
5. Response to Incidents

Each of these areas is a huge concept that deserves a separate discussion/exposure on its own. For example, falling foul of Data Privacy regulations could lead to fines and penalties from regulatory bodies behind the GDPR, the CCPA, and HIPAA (in the case of handling Personal Health Information (PHI).

We have prepared these posts to be bite-sized and actionable even for business owners new to the field. This topic is discussed in two parts and in the second part we shall go into each of these five segments in high-level detail.

Hope you learned something new and are more confident about the pillars of GRC and where to start to properly implement a Cybersecurity GRC unit in your company without spending a fortune.

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If you don’t have all the time in the world and would like handheld guidance in executing cybersecurity measures at your organization, then reach out to one of our Fortune 500 experts here. If you just want to keep learning, then you can sign up for cybersecurity tips served through real-life story-like reports on common cyber breaches and threats and how to mitigate them.