Cost-optimise your security budget by investing wisely

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Large investment doesn’t always mean more security. Organisations should focus on ensuring every pound spent is helping reduce business-related risk.

Regardless of the size of the budget, business operations must be prioritised and should guide an organisation’s decision about which risks to prioritise.

An optimised budget is one that has the greatest impact on risk for the least money spent. To do this, organisations should:

• Have a security strategy that is aligned to business operations and strategic goals.
• Determine which risks to prioritise
• Align with the business regarding risk tolerance.
• Make objective decisions about which people, processes and technology they need.

Cost-optimise your technology and managed services

The increase in cyber security services and products continues year on year, with the number of active firms in the UK rising from 1,483 to 1,838. With so many products and services on the market, organisations can become confused about which security tools are right for them. Tools and services are only worth it if the money spent matches the level of risk reduction received.

When it comes to assessing the value of technology and managed service investments, a quantified gap analysis is the only thing that can really show if they are worth the price being paid. Organisations that do this see several benefits:

IT benefits

• Insight into the efficacy of security tools and services.
• Increased alignment with the business regarding the organisation’s business-essential security controls.
• The opportunity to redesign a programme that provides the greatest risk reduction for the least amount of money.

Business benefits

• The opportunity to reduce security friction.
• Greater alignment with security about what necessary spending is.
• Increased insight into and understanding of cyber-related risk.

Without this approach, making decisions regarding the true risk reduction value of current security tools and services and whether outsourcing is appropriate for your organisation is impossible. This could lead to tools not being managed or optimised correctly and therefore not meeting the needs of your organisation. Not only is this a lack of return on investment, but it could also put your business at greater risk of a breach.

At Chameleon Cyber Consultants, we pride ourselves on facilitating business success through secure environments. Our mission is to use the very latest security thinking, practices and technology tailored to your specific business needs and objectives.

If you would like support creating a cyber security strategy tailored to your business, visit chameleoncyberconsultants.com.

Originally published on Business Reporter