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The publication of a recording of a wiretapped conversation between German air force officers by Russian state media on Friday once again reveals that Germany's critical infrastructure is not prepared for hybrid warfare and not enough has been invested in technical security- despite the fact that Germany has been at the center of hybrid warfare in Europe for many years. The consequences are cyber attacks with sleeping viruses, industrial espionage, data theft - and the "Taurus" eavesdropping affair.
Against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine, experts fear that many dormant viruses have already been introduced into the critical infrastructure without being noticed. In addition to the political tensions, there are also times of economic upheaval, energy shortages and extreme weather events caused by climate change. German and European KRITIS companies and organizations are confronted with the complex task of arming their IT infrastructures against a multitude of risks.
Ultimately, one of the most fatal consequences of these causes for companies and organizations is an unexpected and possibly irreversible loss of highly sensitive data.
Prevention through optimally aligned IT security concepts with technical and organizational measures on the one hand and appropriate damage-limiting response options on the other are the two relevant pillars of security planning.
The basics of IT emergency planning: the most important aspects of an emergency manual
An effective IT contingency plan is essential for companies and institutions to be able to respond quickly and efficiently to critical IT disruptions and cyber attacks as they evolve. This plan sets out the actions to be taken in the event of an emergency and defines the roles and responsibilities of the IT emergency team. Implementing such a plan demonstrates a company's commitment to protecting its critical assets and maintaining business continuity, which promotes trust among customers, business partners and investors.
In the event of an IT emergency, the first steps include identifying the cause, communicating with external specialist services and initiating appropriate countermeasures. Precise and continuous documentation of these steps is essential to ensure the traceability and evaluation of the measures taken and to be able to learn from them.
Regularly reviewing and updating the emergency plan is essential to ensure that it always meets the company's current requirements and circumstances. This includes adapting to new technological developments and organizational changes.
It is also important to define clear points of contact in the plan, which can include internal departments as well as external consultants and service providers, such as IT forensics specialists or data recovery companies. Providing this information enables a rapid response in the event of a crisis and thus minimizes potential damage.
Finally, the contingency plan should include a detailed appendix with important contact and customer information to enable efficient communication and rapid response should normal business operations be disrupted.
5 points for the NIS2-compliant expansion of IT contingency planning
Provided that the IT emergency planning is up to date, NIS2-specific extensions are added for KRITIS companies and organizations.
The NIS2 directive should be strategically integrated into the IT emergency plan in order to increase resilience to cyber threats. It is essential for companies and organizations, especially operators of critical infrastructure, to implement preventive security measures and to define clear guidelines for responding to and reporting security incidents.
1. Risk assessment:
A comprehensive risk assessment should be conducted in such a way that it focuses on identifying threats and vulnerabilities that are relevant under the NIS2 Directive. It should assess how potential risks could impact key components of the business processes and identify the most important assets. The risks should be prioritized and strategies developed to minimize them.
2. Reporting of incidents:
A clearly defined process should be established for reporting security incidents to the relevant authorities and affected parties as appropriate. Deadlines, formats and communication channels should be defined in accordance with the requirements of the NIS2 Directive. All incidents and the measures taken should be documented.
3. Security measures:
Technical and organizational security measures should be implemented in accordance with the requirements of the NIS2 Directive. Particular attention should be paid to encryption, access control, penetration testing and security updates. The security measures should be documented, and regular checks should be carried out to verify their effectiveness.
4. Training and awareness raising:
Although not directly part of the reactive emergency response, regular training should be provided to all employees on cybersecurity and the requirements of the NIS2 directive. It should be ensured that all employees are able to recognize and report security incidents. Cybersecurity topics should be integrated into general employee training.
5. Review and update:
The emergency manual should be reviewed regularly and updated as necessary. Regular exercises and tests should be conducted to assess the effectiveness of the emergency plan. All changes to the emergency manual must be documented.
DATA REVERSE®: Professional data recovery in the emergency plan
A third of German companies suffer a data loss in the event of a cyberattack despite existing security precautions. So what do you do if the barriers to your own IT security have already been breached and data has been stolen, leaked, encrypted or deleted? What happens if the offsite backup is irreversibly damaged at the same time as the onsite data backup?
And finally: What if the company's reputation or even its entire business or political work depends significantly on this data?
In this context, DATA REVERSE® acts as a partner that primarily responds with fast and reliable data recovery in the event of business data loss. As a professional data recovery service provider for over 20 years, the company has the necessary expertise to recover data from most digital storage media and has TÜV certificates in the area of service provision as well as further ISO certifications for QM and data security.
For urgent cases, the service provider offers a personal contact person and express mode for data recovery within 48 hours to minimize operational downtime and maintain the trust of investors, business partners and customers.
The integration of the professional data rescuer into the emergency plan is a small but important detail for the required resilience in today's world.
Partner program: DATA REVERSE® for IT solution providers & system houses
DATA REVERSE® is currently entering into new collaborations with partners who want to better protect themselves and their clients in the event of data loss. The partner program is aimed at solution partners, MSPs and also, as before, traditional IT system houses.
The partnership offers opportunities to expand know-how in the field of data recovery and IT forensics, and not just in the course of emergency planning. Partners can thus benefit from the many years of experience and expertise in professional data recovery and IT forensics and jointly build a strong defense against data loss and cyber attacks.
Further information on the data recovery partner program of DATA REVERSE®.
Contact Info:
Name: Christine Schröder
Email: Send Email
Organization: DATA REVERSE® Data Recovery
Website: http://www.datareverse-datenrettung.de
Release ID: 89124584
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