Over the past two decades, technology and data have grown exponentially, and with it, the operational, financial, and reputational consequences of a breach. In order to mitigate this, organizations of every size need to adopt robust cybersecurity measures and best practices to protect sensitive data, intellectual property, and customer information. This article was put together by Amazon Web Services (AWS) experts from a curated collection of tips and best practices. They drew from their field experience and customer feedback, and Kosh feels these tips will help you strengthen your defenses, mitigate risks, and establish a secure digital environment for your operations.
Kosh Solutions provides clarifying comments throughout.
1. Define your security and compliance goals
First and foremost, you want to understand what you need to protect and why. Cloud security is a shared responsibility. While AWS is responsible for the security “of” the cloud (the physical infrastructure, the facilities, the actual compute and building blocks), security “in” the cloud (the workloads and applications that you deploy onto the cloud) is your responsibility. A car analogy can be a helpful way to understand the model. Using AWS is a bit like driving a car. You don’t have to know how the engine works or how the air conditioning keeps you cool, all you need is the skill to drive the car and the ability to control the basic features of the vehicle. If you leave your car in an unsafe area with its doors unlocked, you’re not fulfilling your side of the deal. Based on your organization’s goals, structure, and requirements, you decide and manage how to protect your cloud content, platform, applications, systems, and networks. This is where security frameworks like ITSG-33 (Canada) or the NIST cybersecurity framework (U.S.) are helpful. They give structured guidance, risk management strategies, and industry-recognized best practices to help you create, assess, and refine a robust cybersecurity program.
Kosh Commentary:
Let's break this down for small business owners. Imagine your digital world as a city, and your data is the crown jewels. AWS has this part called "the cloud," and it's like renting a super-secure vault for your digital treasures. AWS takes care of the walls and the vault door, but it's up to you to make sure no one sneaks in through a back window.
And that car analogy? Well, think of AWS like a car rental. You don't need to be a mechanic to drive the car, but you do need to lock it when you park in a shady neighborhood. That's your part of the deal. If you want to guard your digital valuables, you need to set clear goals and decide how to keep them safe. It's like designing your own security system for that digital vault.
2. Adopt a zero-trust model
Just because someone walks into your office building, it does not mean they belong there. You want to ensure users and systems strongly prove their identities and trustworthiness before allowing access to applications, data, and other systems. A zero-trust security model is a set of mechanisms that provide security controls around digital access and assets while not solely depending on traditional network controls or network perimeters like firewalls. It requires continuous authentication of users and systems—regardless of their location or previous privileges—to access applications or data. Simply put, "never trust, always verify."
Kosh Commentary:
For small business owners, a "zero-trust" model means not taking chances. Just because someone walks through your office door doesn't mean they should have access to your confidential stuff. It's like having a super-secure reception desk that checks everyone's ID, even if they've been there before.
Traditional security was like putting a big wall around your castle and hoping for the best. But this "zero-trust" thing is more like having guards at every door and checking IDs every time, even if they're wearing the same uniform as your employees. It's all about "never trust, always verify."
3. Enforce strong access controls
Once you’ve verified who is in your building, you want to make sure they have access to the rooms required to conduct their business—without giving them access to the entire building. This is the same when it comes to your applications, data, and other systems. You want to give the right users and systems the right access to the right resources and tools at the right times. This is Identity and Access Management (IAM).
Kosh Commentary:
Small business owners, think of access control like having a master key and a bunch of smaller keys. You only give out the smaller keys to the rooms people need to enter, not the entire building. That's what Identity and Access Management (IAM) is all about. It's like having a keyring with just the keys you need for the day, not a whole bunch of them that could get lost or stolen.
4. Protect your data assets
As cloud usage increases, so do the rules, expectations, and regulations. Organizations are, in many cases, required to abide by the laws and governance structures of the location where they collect data. But beyond just complying with laws, protecting your data is also good for business. It builds trust with your customers and reduces regulatory and financial risk. You can safeguard your data in a number of ways, including encrypting data at rest (data which is not being accessed or used) to secure it in storage and encrypting data in transit (data moving from one location to another) across networks to prevent unauthorized access.
Kosh Commentary:
Here's the deal for small business owners: When you collect data, you're expected to follow the rules in your area, just like any other business. But beyond that, taking care of your data is a smart move. It shows your customers you're trustworthy and can save you from legal trouble.
Think of data like secret recipes. You'd keep those recipes locked up in a safe (that's encrypting data at rest) and make sure nobody can eavesdrop while you're sharing them with your chefs (that's encrypting data in transit). It's all about keeping your secrets safe.
5. Embed security at all levels
From the mailroom to the boardroom, security is everyone’s job. So, creating a culture where security decisions are made at every level, in every corner of the organization, is important. To do this, you’ll want to: Establish and communicate strong security controls, automate as much as possible, from the setup and configuration of infrastructure to responding and escalating issues, establish flexible security guidelines that point to safe practices without overly restricting users’ actions, implement security controls and practices at each stage of the pipeline, from code development to testing, deployment, and operations.
Kosh Commentary:
Small business owners, here's the scoop: Security isn't just for the big shots in the boardroom. It's for everyone in your business, from the front desk to the CEO's office. Imagine you have a building, and every employee is like a security guard. You'd want them all to know how to spot trouble and what to do about it.
To create a security-conscious culture, you need to talk about security (that's what "establish and communicate strong security controls" means), make things run on autopilot as much as you can, set some basic rules for everyone to follow, and make sure security is part of everything you do, from designing new stuff to making it run smoothly.
6. Modernize threat detection and security monitoring
Security used to be a rear-view mirror activity. An incident would occur, and an organization would react to mitigate or fix the issue. Now, with advanced tools powered by machine learning, it’s become much easier to be proactive. These tools can conduct continuous monitoring and threat detection, identifying and escalating issues before they become a problem.
Kosh Commentary:
For small business owners, this is like trading in your old security camera for a new one with a smart system. In the old days, you'd see a break-in after it happened. But with these fancy new tools, it's like having a guard who spots trouble before it even starts. It's like having a crystal ball that tells you when something bad might happen so you can stop it in its tracks.
7. Automate security operations and incident response
Once an issue has been identified, using automation to escalate, respond, and report will allow for consistency and scalability. Instead of focusing on administration and chasing users, security teams are freed up to focus more on strategic work, like testing, refining, or enhancing your security program.
Kosh Commentary:
Small business owners, automation is your best friend here. It's like having a personal assistant who handles all the boring stuff. When a security problem comes up, your system can automatically call for help, sort things out, and even write up a report. That means you can focus on the important stuff, like making your security even better.
8. Audit your compliance and assurance
“Audit” doesn’t have to be a scary term. In fact, when it comes to your cybersecurity program, using tools to continually audit your cloud usage will help you simplify risk and compliance assessments and position you to always be audit-ready. These tools can make sure you’re meeting the requirements in frameworks, quickly identify areas of noncompliance, and generate audit-ready reports with links to automatically-collected evidence. This gives you an extra layer of reassurance that you are compliant and meeting the requirements of your security program.
Kosh Commentary:
Alright, small business owners, "audit" might sound scary, but it's like getting your business checked by a pro. Just like how you'd hire an accountant to make sure your finances are in order, these tools are like having a digital auditor. They go through your digital stuff to make sure you're following the rules and help you show proof that you're doing it right. It's like having a digital clean bill of health for your business.
9. Have a disaster recovery plan
Disasters happen. Floods, earthquakes, technical failures or unauthorized access. Being ready with a strong disaster recovery plan as a subset of your organization’s business continuity plan (BCP) is essential to avoid or minimize data loss, reputational damage, loss of revenue, and downtime.
Kosh Commentary:
Small business owners, disasters aren't just in the movies. They could be a flood, a power outage, or even a sneaky cyber-attack. Having a disaster recovery plan is like having a superhero backup plan for your business. It's like knowing what to do if your shop gets hit by a tornado. You can bounce back faster, keep your customers happy, and protect your reputation.
10. Ensure continuous security review and modernization
Cybersecurity is constantly evolving, with new vulnerabilities and techniques emerging all the time. So, periodically reviewing your security posture helps you stay ahead of these ever-changing threats, adapt to changes in technology or your own operations, proactively identify vulnerabilities, and continue to meet compliance requirements.
Kosh Commentary:
Small business owners, think of this like updating your store. You wouldn't want to sell VHS tapes in a world of streaming services, right? Well, the same goes for your cybersecurity. Things change all the time, and if you don't keep up, you might be vulnerable. Regularly checking your security and making improvements is like renovating your store to keep up with the times. It's all about staying safe and competitive in the digital world.
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