Protecting information both online and offline has become necessary and challenging at the same time. Cyber threats are increasing daily and now they are not limited to certain industries.
Responsible organizations take information security very seriously and many organizations have set up InfoSec departments to ensure their safety.
Information security is implemented by companies for a variety of reasons. The primary goals of Information security are usually to ensure the security, integrity, and availability of a firm’s data.
Because of the broad nature of information security, it frequently necessitates the installation of multiple forms of security, such as application security, infrastructure security, encryption, incident response, vulnerability management, and disaster recovery.
Project managers should be aware of the importance of Information security and its guidelines for project management. In this article we have outlined the 10 key information security guidelines for project management that should be kept in focus:
1. Information Security Certifications
Project managers and senior-level professionals should be provided with necessary information security certifications so that they can handle any problem that arises without any hassle.
Certifications ensure expertise and if you the project managers have the expertise, they will be able to handle things in a better way. Project management is all about making the right decisions and when project managers have information security certifications, they make informed decisions by keeping best practices in prospect.
2. Plan Communications
The success and failure of a project rely on effective communication. Every project manager should devise a proper communications plan, which should include:
- The medium of communication
- Level of information shared online
- Technical standards
Planning all of the things stated above helps managers in protecting the information shared through the communications channel.
When choosing a medium of communication, managers will have to see how secure the medium is and what steps he has to take. Similarly, if the level of information that should be shared through these communication mediums is standardized, the risk of loss of information can be decreased.
Also, having set a certain technical standard of communication is highly necessary as it ensures that the team is not using anything sub-par and certain safety criteria are met.
3. Plan Risk Management
Planning Risk Management is not a new thing in project management but over here, the word Risk Management is related to information security. Usually, managers plan risks like what if a resource is not available or how much time and money should be allocated to handle any uncertainty.
Similarly, having a risk management plan allows managers to plan the resources that are at risk and how they can incorporate different strategies in minimizing that risk. This risk management plan comes after a thorough risk analysis.
Every single aspect is taken into account and then every data set is given a priority on account of its significance. Once the importance of every data set is outlined, the risk management framework comes into play. Every threat is kept in focus and then certain strategies are devised to counter it.
4. Secure Communications
As mentioned before, communication is the key to the success or failure of a project. Similarly, the security of communication channels is the key to the protection of information security.
Every project manager should select a certain communication channel by keeping certain points in mind, like:
- How secure the channel is and what are its weaknesses.
- Nature and sensitivity of the information that has to be shared through the channel.
- Are there any loopholes in the channel that can put the project at risk?
- User-friendliness and implementation complexity.
All these things are important to look at it and there is no margin of compromise on any of them. The security of communication is vital because a single breach can cause the loss of millions.
5. Encryption
Encryption is the best way of protecting sensitive information from getting into the hands of the wrong people. Using a tool like a VPN can help you protect your own identity as well as your data from hackers, the government, and other spying eyes.
Passing information through a secured network is always the best solution because this way your network’s vulnerability is ruled out and you are able to maintain your position in a safe zone.
The best VPN providers like Astrill VPN offer AES 256-bit military-grade encryption. It makes sure that there are no data leaks and that your traffic and data interchange are encrypted. Project managers should carry out periodic IP and DNS leak tests, and ensure that their data sharing is safe.
6. Authentication and Password Management
Project managers should implement a protocol of authentication and password management on almost every process that deals with important data sets. There are some great password management platforms available that should be used rather than saving your credentials over your browsers and on your devices as notes.
Credentials for critical systems are a prized commodity and hackers sell them for a hefty price over the web once they get a hold of them. There are some key practices for password management that you should always consider:
- Use long, complex passwords.
- Don’t use the same passwords on multiple websites or for multiple accounts.
- Change passwords from time to time.
- Use a password manager so you can choose difficult to guess and unique passwords for each account.
- Use two-factor authentication where appropriate.
7. Access Management
A certain level of access should be granted to every team member according to their need and job role. Not every member should have access to data that is not relevant to them or that they should not be concerned with.
Limiting access to data has become very important in today’s world because data is everything. Corporate espionage is a growing trend as now people have realized the value of information, and the greed to sell it for a good price is growing.
Corporate espionage used to be a rare thing back in the day but many of its cases have been reported lately, especially in the tech industry. This is why it is important that every employee should be given a certain amount of access to information and constant checks should be kept on their activity to ensure there is no theft of data.
Here are a few points that should be enforced:
- If people leave the project or company, access should be revoked.
- Proper documentation should be done and secure onboarding and off-boarding procedures should be used.
- Schedule periodic reviews of access permissions.
- Preliminary background checks should be carried out before hiring.
8. Wireless Protection
The share of information does not occur from within the walls of the office but now as the work procedures have evolved, people connect and share data from different parts of the world. Multi-national companies and global IT firms have employees all over the world, that share data on daily basis. Project managers and teams travel from time to time.
The question here is whether all of them are connected to a secure network or not?
Professionals using public Wi-Fi are always shaky about whether it is safe to use or not and this doubt is not wrong. Public Wi-Fi is the worst network a user can connect to share their sensitive information online.
Public Wi-Fi networks are highly un-secure and always on the radar of hackers and the government. If you are sharing your project’s data over a public wireless network then this would be the most naive and dumb decision of your life.
However, you can take advantage of a public wireless network by using a VPN that will encrypt your traffic and safeguard your data. Security tools like a VPN should always be installed on your devices so that you can secure yourself in time of need.
9. Secure Deliverables
Well-defined security guidelines should be provided by the project Manager while handing over the project to the operations team or the client. The receiver of the deliverable should be aware of the security challenges associated with that very project that is being handed over to them and how they can handle it.
In case there are any logs maintained by the project manager regarding the security issues of the deliverable, they should be shared with the receiver of that project.
Also, a backup of the deliverable should be kept by the project manager, in case the delivered project is damaged while configured by the other party, they should not face a big loss.
10. Monitor and Control Risks
The security risks are not standardized and it is impractical to keep a standardized set of security protocols to deal with any threat. Information security is an evolving practice and the threats are not only limited to malware and hackers.
A team of information security certified professionals should be established and every upcoming information security trend should be studied. At the same time, the systems and communication channels should be upgraded and maintained accordingly in time to control risk.
