Incident Response is an essential cybersecurity component. It builds on an iterative foundation of preparation, detection, containment, eradication, and post-incident activity. An Incident Response Plan (IR Plan), policies, and procedures should be in place prior to responding to an incident. Organizations activate Incident Response Plans (IR Plans) and procedures in response to a variety of attacks ranging from malware outbreaks to data breaches and distributed internet-based attacks. The type of incident can vary in classification based on criteria such as severity and impact which in turn drive response time, resource allocations, and level of escalation. For those subject to PCI DSS compliance, for example, an IR function must be activated in response to specific situations such as the identification of one or more rogue wireless access points. Regardless of an incident’s magnitude or specific characteristics, the phased approach of the incident response process provides a consistent way for teams to manage incidents.

Companies often have many complex inner workings and processes to achieve their product goals. In order to attain their objectives, it may be necessary to bring in outside service providers to assist. Outside service providers are not limited to payment processors or third-party co-locations but can entail any aspect of your environment. Examples include firewall management, key/database management, outsourced security functions, or a human resources platform for the keeping of onboarding records and documents. Any aspect of your environment may be outsourced due to a lack of technical expertise, time constraints, or increased productivity due to the service or product.

Validated Point-to-Point Encryption (P2PE) solutions that utilize compliant Point of Interaction (POI) devices provide the most effective way to minimize PCI DSS scope. These solutions are formally recognized and validated by the PCI Security Standards Council, ensuring compliance and reducing the associated security burdens. On the other hand, Non-standard Encryption Solution Assessments (NESA) or End-to-End Encryption (E2EE) implementations often require additional testing, validation, or the acceptance of risk by the processor, as these systems are not validated against the PCI SSC P2PE standards. By choosing validated P2PE solutions, organizations can streamline compliance efforts, reduce risk, and adhere to industry standards more efficiently.

layered security is the sentiment that no single security device or control is responsible for the overall security of the system. In this methodology, there is no single point of failure that would expose an organization’s sensitive data or infrastructure. Implementing a layered security approach will help to protect an organization’s assets and secure its environment.

Having spent over 20 years in the industry, Caleb’s experience spans multiple areas including Auditing, Digital Forensics, Compliance, and IT/Security Operations. He enjoys collaborating with clients and teammates on projects to improve an organization’s security posture and effectively manage risk. Caleb joined MegaplanIT in early 2019, after meeting the team and learning more about their assessment strategy and approach to managing client relationships.

In today’s digital age, ensuring the security of sensitive payment data is paramount, and PCI compliance provides a robust framework to safeguard businesses, service providers, and customers. By adhering to PCI (Payment Card Industry) standards, organizations can significantly reduce the risk of data breaches, fraud, and financial losses as well as prevent fines. PCI compliance encompasses a comprehensive set of security requirements, best practices, and guidelines designed to protect payment card data throughout its lifecycle.

Privacy, personal information, and controls. These terms conceptually sound straight forward but organizations continue to face an uphill road towards implementing and maintaining compliant programs and methods for the handling of received personal information and customer data. Two of the more well-known legal requirements associated with personal information and privacy are the “California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)” and the “General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)”. When organizations need to address one or more legal or regulatory requirements, it can become problematic and complex when control requirements are analyzed in a vacuum and not evaluated from an enterprise internal controls viewpoint. What do we do when requirements vary for different customers and data sets or data elements? What controls do we have to implement or already exist that will address these requirements? In this article, we explore key hurdles facing businesses seeking compliance with GDPR and CCPA regulations.

When it comes to network penetration testing in the cloud, we are noticing that the landscape of how companies deploy servers and consume IT infrastructure is changing as companies are moving workloads to cloud environments such as AWS, GCP, and Azure.