We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: increasing security for nonprofits must be top of mind for all nonprofit organizations. It’s a sad fact, but nonprofit organizations are a juicy target for threat actors – low-hanging fruit, so to speak. This is because, historically speaking, nonprofit organizations often don’t have the budget to put towards securing their organization from outside threats (more about this later).
Suffice to say, nonprofits need to make security a priority. So, in this blog, we’re going to show you six steps to build a holistic security strategy for your nonprofit, so that you can focus more on what matters – your mission.
Want to see a more technical, in-depth overview of increasing security for your nonprofit? Check out this blog instead!
Increasing Cybersecurity for Your Nonprofit
As mentioned above, we’ve seen a disturbing trend with many nonprofits where cybersecurity and privacy are pushed to the back burner – nice to have, but non-essential.
Unfortunately, the threat landscape has changed, and this mentality can no longer suffice. With breaches, compromised data, and cyberattacks appearing in the news on an almost daily basis (including 2018’s ransomware attacks on two Ontario Children’s Aid Societies), many nonprofits are finding themselves the victim of threat actors and hackers.
From exposure to liability, tarnished reputations, putting vulnerable beneficiaries at risk, or disrupting operations and services, nonprofits face many potential repercussions by not putting security higher on their list of priorities.
Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, says that “every hour of the day, you need to be prepared”. Today’s nonprofits need to have an agile security framework that are built into their technologies, processes, and training programs for their end-users. In the next section, we’ll briefly discuss six steps that you can take to build a holistic security strategy that will increase security for your nonprofit.
6 Steps to Increasing Cybersecurity for Your Nonprofit
So, what does your organization need to do to keep security top of mind? Here are six steps that you can follow to get yourself on the right track:
- Step 1: Build your security solution to ensure that you can respond quickly and efficiently if a breach is detected.
- Step 2: Know where and how your staff, volunteers, and board members are accessing your data, and be able to secure those endpoints with various authentication and management solutions.
- Step 3: Adopt an “assume breach” approach to your security - start assuming that a breach has either already occurred, or that one will occur soon. This will help you reduce the time it takes to detect and recover from a breach.
- Step 4: Securely move your organization to the Cloud. It’s a big decision (and shouldn’t be taken lightly), but there are several benefits for nonprofits who choose to move to the Cloud.
- Step 5: Keep an eye on Shadow IT – systems or applications (like Dropbox or Google Drive) that are in your IT network without your express authorization. Your staff may have downloaded Shadow IT as a way to make their jobs easier, but because you don’t know it’s in your IT environment, it could put you at risk.
- Step 6: Balance the need to protect your information with the need for your employees to be productive. Be sure you’re protecting that information, no matter where it’s resting or who it’s being shared with.
One of the tools that can help, as part of a holistic security strategy is Microsoft 365 Business for nonprofits and registered charities. Providing your nonprofit with the right technology, Microsoft 365 Business incorporates the productivity and collaboration tools of Office 365 with enterprise-grade device management and top-of-the-line security capabilities.
Learn more about the benefits of Microsoft 365 Business and its security capabilities with our on-demand webinar.
Empower 2020: Helping You Learn How to Increase Security for Your Nonprofit
The cyberthreat landscape that exists today is multifaceted, and unfortunately, nonprofits like yours are being targeted more and more. You need a holistic security strategy that’s going to protect your organization from multiple angles – from detecting breaches to limiting damage.
Is security an issue for your nonprofit? Are you unsure of what security measures you need to take in order to keep your nonprofit safe from threat actors? You’ve come to the right place! At Empower 2020, our Virtual Summit for nonprofits and registered charities, we’ll be addressing cybersecurity as one of our key topics for the day. Learn about things like:
- The top cybersecurity threats/trends that you should be aware of.
- The top five things you should do to improve your security posture.
- Cost-efficient and effective tools that will help increase security for your nonprofits.
- And more!
Want to learn more about this full-day virtual conference and how you can register for it now? Click here!
Related:
