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South African businesses of all sizes, including educational institutions, have been particularly hard hit by an onslaught of cyber-attacks, although this is not always public knowledge, according to Kerry Curtin, cyber risk expert at Aon South Africa.
Cyber risk was ranked as the #1 risk facing educational institutions and is likely to remain so for the foreseeable future, according to Aon's 2018 global risk management survey.
Curtin says the potential theft or leakage of data, particularly confidential information in an educational setting, should be top of the list in risk planning.
“The need to strengthen institutional resiliency against potential damage, compromising hacks and downtime is crucial,” she adds.
This is because schools, like any other business, are increasingly dependent on technology. The knock-on effect of a cyber incident at an educational facility has the potential to be financially and reputationally catastrophic.
For example, in 2016 it was reported that the University of Limpopo’s website was taken down, leaking exam papers and the details of over 18 000 students, in addition to perpetrators publicly posting what was believed to be the login details for the University’s intranet.
The sheer number of cyber-attacks on educational institutions suggests that the sector is not as prepared as it should be in its efforts to safeguard networks, according to Curtin.
Aon provides the following tips for the education sector:
Safeguard institution-owned devices
All computers, laptops and smart devices owned by the educational institution should at the very least have a current anti-virus programme installed, in addition to adware and malware protection.
One of the biggest threats to any business is the people operating these devices and their naivety regarding cyber risks, so education is key.
BYOD Policy
The practice of students and staff members bringing devices to school or university that interact with the institution’s network is very likely. The first line of defence is keeping guest devices separate from the network, allowing the institution to keep data secure on an administrative network, as well as monitor traffic more closely.
When it comes to sending sensitive information, it is crucial to implement a secure file exchange solution that can protect against cyber threats such as phishing scams.
Multi-Factor Authentication
While passwords alone do not provide adequate levels of security and hackers are able to circumvent physical biometrics such as fingerprint identification as a single layer of authentication, Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) is fast becoming the next line of defence.
Social Media Policy
Not only does the policy need to stipulate what is deemed as acceptable behaviour from employees and students, but it also needs to explain what the benefits are of becoming an ambassador for the brand and the legal ramifications inherent to social media platforms.
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