Strengthening Cyber Resilience: Insights from rradar’s Experts

On 14th November 2024, members of the LegalTech in Leeds community gathered at Platform, Bruntwood SciTech,for an engaging and informative session led by Neil Topham and Leigh Payne from rradar’s Cyber, Data, and Information Law (CDIL) team. The event highlighted the critical need for organisations to strengthen their cyber resilience in the face of escalating cyber threats.

As cyber-attacks grow in frequency and sophistication, the session provided practical strategies and insights designed to help legal, IT, and compliance professionals build robust defences.

Why Cyber Resilience Matters

The session began with an overview of the evolving threat landscape. Attendees learned that 70% of UK businesses have reported a rise in cyber incidents over the past year, with SMEs particularly vulnerable due to limited cybersecurity resources. The conversation shifted the focus from questioning “if” an attack might occur to planning for “when” it happens.

The speakers outlined the far-reaching consequences of cyber incidents, including:

• Operational Disruption: System downtime and reduced productivity.
• Financial Costs: Recovery efforts, data restoration, and potential ransom payments.
• Legal and Compliance Issues: The requirement to report incidents and manage claims.
• Reputation Damage: The loss of customer trust, with nearly half of affected businesses struggling to attract new clients after an attack.

Exploring Key Threats

Neil and Leigh offered a comprehensive breakdown of the most prevalent and emerging threats:

• Phishing Attacks: Common and versatile, these social engineering tactics often lead to larger breaches.
• Ransomware: A growing threat, where data is locked or stolen, often with no guarantee of recovery after paying a ransom.
• Insider Threats: Breaches caused by malicious insiders or accidental employee actions.
• Supply-Chain Vulnerabilities: Weak links within vendor networks.
• Emerging Risks: Attendees learned about new attack methods, including AI-driven cyber-attacks, deepfake and synthetic identity fraud, and vulnerabilities in IoT devices.

Real-world examples brought these risks to life, where a businesses' inadequate security measures allowed a hacker to access sensitive data on a cloud-based server. The incident resulted in an ICO reprimand and underscored the importance of implementing multi-factor authentication and regular IT audits.

Legal Compliance as a Defence Mechanism

A central theme of the session was the role of compliance in enhancing cybersecurity. The speakers revisited the Seven Principles of UK GDPR, focusing on practical steps such as:

• Ensuring integrity and confidentiality through strong password management and data backups.
• Limiting data retention to reduce exposure.
• Aligning practices with accountability requirements by conducting regular risk assessments and reviews.

The session highlighted the importance of aligning technical measures with legal frameworks to create a comprehensive defence strategy.

Incident Response: The Four-Step Framework

Attendees were introduced to a clear and actionable incident response strategy:

1. Containment and Eradication: Isolating affected systems to prevent further damage.
2. Recovery: Restoring functionality and protecting compromised data.
3. Assessment: Evaluating the breach to determine reporting and notification thresholds.
4. Evaluation and Response: Learning from the incident to strengthen future defences.

Practical Advice for Organisations

The speakers shared actionable tips for organisations to bolster their cyber resilience, including:

• Adopting advanced threat detection tools.
• Strengthening internal protocols such as multi-factor authentication and password hygiene.
• Ensuring a robust response plan that is regularly tested and updated.

Looking Ahead

The event concluded with a Q&A session, where attendees had the opportunity to seek guidance on specific challenges their organisations face. Feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with many praising the practical focus and relevance of the advice shared.

To explore the strategies in greater detail, view the embedded presentation slides below.

Access the Full Presentation

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