44 CYBER CRIME & CYBER SECURITY TRENDS IN AFRICA BEST PRACTICE GUIDELINES FOR BUSINESSES Ensure All Devices Allowed on Company Networks Have Adequate Security Protections If a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy is in place, ensure a minimal security profile is established for any devices that are allowed access to the network. Implement a Removable Media Policy Where practical, restrict unauthorized devices, such as external portable hard-drives and other removable media. Such devices can both introduce malware and facilitate intellectual property breaches, whether intentional or unintentional. If external media devices are permitted, automatically scan them for viruses upon connection to the network and use a DLP solution to monitor and restrict copying confidential data to unencrypted external storage devices. Be Aggressive in Updating and Patching Update, patch, and migrate from outdated and insecure browsers, applications, and browser plugins. This also applies to operating systems, not just across computers, but mobile, ICS, and IoT devices as well. Keep virus and intrusion prevention definitions at the latest available versions using vendors’ automatic updates. Most software vendors work diligently to patch exploited software vulnerabilities; however, such patches can only be effective if adopted in the field. Wherever possible, automate patch deployments to maintain protection against vulnerabilities across the organization. Enforce an Effective Password Policy Ensure passwords are strong. Passwords should be at least 8-10 characters long and include a mixture of letters and numbers. Encourage users to avoid re-using the same passwords on multiple websites and sharing passwords with others should be forbidden. Passwords should be changed regularly, at least every 90 days. Restrict Email Attachments Configure mail servers to block or remove email that contains file attachments that are commonly used to spread viruses, such as .VBS, .BAT, .EXE, .PIF, and .SCR files. Enterprises should investigate policies for .PDFs that are allowed to be included as email attachments. Ensure that mail servers are adequately protected by security software and that email is thoroughly scanned. Ensure Infection and Incident Response Procedures Are in Place TT  Keep your security vendor contact information handy; know who you will call, and what steps you will take if you have one or more infected systems. TT  Ensure that a backup-and-restore solution is in place in order to restore lost or compromised data in the event of successful attack or catastrophic data loss. TT  Make use of post-infection detection capabilities from web gateway, endpoint security solutions and firewalls to identify infected systems. TT  Isolate infected computers to prevent the risk of further infection within the organization, and restore using trusted backup media. TT  If network services are exploited by malicious code or some other threat, disable or block access to those services until a patch is applied. Educate Employees As ever, basic common sense and the introduction of good security habits can go a long way to keeping sites and servers safe this year. TT  Do not open attachments unless they are expected and come from a known and trusted source, and do not execute software that is downloaded from the Internet (if such actions are permitted) unless from a trusted source or the download has been scanned for malware. Ensure Regular Backups Are Available TT  Be cautious when clicking on URLs in emails or social media programs, even when coming from trusted sources and friends. Create and maintain regular backups of critical systems, as well as endpoints. In the event of a security or data emergency, backups should be easily accessible to minimize downtime of services and employee productivity. TT  Deploy web browser URL reputation plugin solutions that display the reputation of websites from searches. TT  Restrict software to corporate-approved applications, if possible, and avoid downloading software from file sharing sites. Only download packages directly from trusted vendors’ websites.