Proactive vs reactive cybersecurity

As we have been discussing throughout the year, cyberattacks against companies continue to rise due to the use of increasingly sophisticated technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence. The problem is that once they gain access to the systems, they are also more difficult to combat.

Implementing strategies and preventive measures is essential to block unauthorized access by cybercriminals to our IT infrastructure. For this purpose, proactive cybersecurity is gaining importance over reactive cybersecurity, proving to be much more efficient. But what are the differences between the two? Let’s take a closer look.

Differences between proactive cybersecurity and reactive cybersecurity

The main difference between these two cybersecurity strategies lies in how they are implemented. A proactive cybersecurity strategy focuses on prevention, constant monitoring, and the ability to respond to cyberattacks. Implementing this type of strategy requires the adoption of specific tools that help prevent cyberattacks 24/7 in a managed manner.

In contrast, a reactive cybersecurity strategy focuses on responding to an incident that has already occurred. At this stage, it is essential to have attack response plans, data recovery strategies, and tools for post-incident analysis.

Tools for implementing a proactive strategy

Another tool that prevents cyberattacks is Petam. It is an automatic online scanner that uses Artificial Intelligence to detect security breaches and vulnerabilities on a website. Petam searches for and identifies vulnerabilities and weak points in a system. Once the analysis is complete, it provides a report with relevant information and cybersecurity recommendations to enhance the protection of your site.

Another way to protect yourself proactively is through managed cybersecurity services. Having an outsourced cybersecurity department allows you to focus on what truly matters—your core business activities. Additionally, with an outsourced service, you’ll have a team of cybersecurity experts who will monitor and oversee your IT infrastructure 24/7 to prevent and stop cyberattacks.

Tools for implementing a reactive strategy

As we explained earlier, a reactive strategy is implemented when unauthorized access has already occurred. In this case, the tools for this type of strategy should focus on expelling the intruding agent or mitigating any potential damage caused.

WWatcher is a cybersecurity tool specifically designed to prevent information theft and large-scale downloading of internal files, protecting your internal and private information from unauthorized third parties.

It allows you to limit the volume of files a user can download in a day, based on their role and activity within the company, to prevent unauthorized users from downloading sensitive and confidential internal information in bulk in case of account or password theft.

ESED pricing for managed cybersecurity

At ESED, we offer managed cybersecurity services for businesses. Our service is based on these 4 pillars:

• External service: Work in a secure environment with MDR solutions: we handle incident management, vulnerability analysis, threat detection, ransomware protection, regulatory compliance, and 24/7 monitoring.
  
  
• Active threat hunting: We perform "Threat Hunting" actions. We are constantly looking for threats proactively, to detect suspicious behaviors that might have gone unnoticed.
  
  
• Constant monitoring: We monitor and periodically update your systems automatically to ensure their security. Most cyberattacks and security breaches occur due to lack of system updates.
  
  
• Pentesting: We periodically validate your company's security through "pentesting" or penetration testing techniques. This way, we design cybersecurity strategies based on your company’s vulnerabilities and critical points.

If you're considering outsourcing your cybersecurity department and have any questions, feel free to contact our team of experts.