Page 51 - Cyber Defense eMagazine - December 2017

NONPROFITS CANNOT IGNORE CYBERSECURITY

By Chloé Messdaghi, Digital Marketing Manager, Kenna Security

Prior to joining Kenna Security, I worked with many nonprofits around the world. Each

focused on providing shelter, education, health services, and food to children in need.
The mission was clear and critical.

Executing that mission wasn’t so easy. Nonprofits run on donated money. Though our
goal was to save children, the strategy to drive the mission forward was to focus on

donations, extending our reach, and improving services at the lowest possible cost. We
hardly considered IT security as an issue because, well, we were focused on helping

kids, not fighting hackers. We not only ignored the danger, we were oblivious to it.

I recently joined the Kenna Security Team. Since joining, I quickly realized that the

nonprofits (and kids that benefited from it) were actually placed in very real danger. One
successful data breach could have brought down the organizations and ended their

missions, which in return risks the lives of millions of children and their families around

the world.

In a revealing study The Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI) 2017 Report published

alarming statistics that unveiled that severe vulnerabilities are prevalent in the nonprofit
technology infrastructure. While virtually every large nonprofit “has” security, a recent

survey by CohenReznick, showed that more than 70% of nonprofits have not run even
one vulnerability assessment to evaluate their potential risk exposure. Even more, 69%

do not even have a cybersecurity response plan in place. These stats are particularly

frightening when you consider that nonprofits are more than likely to use free open
source solutions with well known vulnerabilities and weaponized exploits hackers will

use to efficiently effect a breach.

There are “good” reasons for this rather dangerous situation. Limited budgets, staff and

expertise are several. Single minded focus on the mission may be another. Whatever

51 Cyber Defense eMagazine – December 2017 Edition
Copyright © 2017, Cyber Defense Magazine, All rights reserved worldwide.