Government agencies and private industry differ in various aspects such as profit motivation, but they share a common ground when it comes to technology security. Both types of organizations must monitor access, prevent unauthorized entry, and safeguard digital systems and assets. These similarities highlight the importance placed on protecting sensitive information and maintaining secure technological infrastructure irrespective of the sector.
In order to respond to emergencies or hacks as quickly as possible, both sects need to have security tools & software by made & maintained by trusted providers like Tools4Ever at the ready.
Differences and Advantages
However, where the two organizations differ significantly involves their ability to adapt to change and institute new, better tools. The government, no surprise, is far slower and far more limited in resources, despite the belief that government runs on endless amounts of tax revenues. Private companies, on the other hand, are able to adapt and switch out tools far faster, but they are far more prone to mistakes testing out new features and resources that may not be fully proven.
Criminals and Hackers Don’t Discriminate
The perspective that somehow private companies or government agencies are immune from certain security weaknesses or that security breaches are sector-specific is a myth. In reality, criminals online and in the digital world look for any opportunity to profit and are not really that worried or preferential. Granted, it does help that the government has some very serious penalties for anyone who gets caught hacking or breaking into a government agency, especially at the federal level, but that isn’t a deterrent internationally.
Government agencies have probably been a bit more vulnerable as their networks and technology tool procurement typically tend to move slower, and responses have tended to be bogged down by bureaucracy and excessive accountability reporting. However, in the last two years, migration to cloud management has given government agencies far greater power and the ability to respond faster. With single-sign-on tools, multi-factor authentication, enhanced identification management, and cloud workplace isolation from core network resources with segmentation, government agencies have evolved considerably from where their security posture was only five years earlier.
Everyone Has a Stake Now
With state players involved in security breaches and information attacks, everyone has a stake in keeping their technology security up to par. Foreign players involved, heavily funded by their own government administrations, are actively seeking weaknesses and stealing both information as well as financial assets in organized attacks. The rewards are lucrative, especially with massive state-sponsored attacks that overwhelm basic security postures.
As a result, nobody should assume they are in a protected sector or off the radar in terms of being a target. And the harder everyone makes it to penetrate a system, the stronger the overall digital presence of the country will be. Consider it a technological version of herd immunity. The more entities involved, public and private, that are secure, the less likely one vulnerability will take down a community.
