Information Security Principle 8

Principle 8 - Active Prevention and Detection of information security incidents 

Having an active system for preventing and detecting incidents, like breaches of security, is important in making sure you have effective information security. If someone, or your system, fails to prevent or detect these breaches then you won’t have a true measure on whether your information security is effective.

Just in networks alone, there are 5 different distinct types of security breaches:

• Malware
• Phishing
• Password Attacks
• Ransomware
• Denial-of-Service

The word “active” is important too.  You need to be constantly on guard. You need to be constantly preventing incidents. You need to be constantly detecting if incidents occur.

In addition, you need to have transparency around doing this too.

Therefore, you need to implement a No Blame Culture.  Easy to say but hard to get right. It’s human instinct to blame people for either failing to prevent security breaches or to detect the breach in the first place.  You must stop blaming and work on encouraging reporting.

However, as soon as you go back to blaming, your system will fail.  You have to keep working on it 24/7.

The goal is to have a true measure of the number of security breaches that your networks and systems are experiencing.

Learn More:

1. Information Security - Principle 1 - Analysing the Protection of Your Information and then Applying Controls
2. Information Security - Principle 2 - Awareness of the need for information security
3. Information Security - Principle 3 - Assignment of Responsibility for Information Security
4. Information Security - Principle 4 - Incorporating management commitment and the interests of stakeholders
5. Information Security - Principle 5 - Enhancing Societal Values
6. Information Security - Principle 6 - Risk assessments determining appropriate controls to reach acceptable levels of risk
7. Information Security - Principle 7 - Security incorporated as an essential element of information networks and systems
8. Information Security - Principle 9 - Ensuring a comprehensive approach to information security management
9. Information Security - Principle 10 - Continual reassessment of information security and making of modifications as appropriate