CASE IN POINT: LESSONS FOR THE PROACTIVE MANAGER
Volume 17 Issue 02 | February 2025
This month we begin our annual review of each category from the prior year. This month we focus on Information Technology. While IT risks are continually evolving, the same larger themes emerge year after year:
Top 3 types of stories in the IT category 2020:
- Data Breaches
- Cyberattacks
- Privacy Issues
Top 3 types of stories in the IT category 2021:
- Data Breaches
- Cyberattacks
- Privacy Issues
Top 3 types of stories in the IT category 2022:
- Data Breaches
- Cyberattacks
- Privacy Issues
Top 3 types of stories in the IT category 2023:
- Data Breaches
- Cyberattacks
- Privacy Issues
Top 3 types of stories in the IT category 2024:
- Data Breaches
- Cyberattacks
- Privacy Issues
And to continue the trend, our advice for avoiding these risks remains the same.
5 Tips That Could Help You Avoid Becoming an IT Headline:
- Practice good password hygiene. Use strong and different passwords for each site you use and enable multi-factor authentication. A password manager can help generate and store your passwords.
- Beware of social engineering tactics. Learn to recognize common methods used by scammers to obtain your personal information, whether via email, text message, phone calls, or in-person. Be skeptical of unsolicited messages and requests for your personal information or money.
- Use only secure Wi-Fi or VPN. Most public or free Wi-Fi networks are unsecured. Always use a VPN service when connecting to a public Wi-Fi network.
- Install updates regularly. Cyber attackers take advantage of unpatched devices and applications. Regularly look for and install OS and application software updates and hardware firmware.
- Backup your data. Something will inevitably go wrong. Your hardware may fail, you may accidentally delete the wrong files or even lose a device. Backups protect you from accidentally losing data and help you recover from ransomware.
We again invite you to review the events from IT and other categories from the prior month with a view toward proactive risk management. As always, we welcome your feedback.
Vice President
Institutional Compliance & Security
