Rat droppings…. REALLY? 🤔
It Happened Late One Night....
I was home one night in my recliner watching tv. Suzie, my cat, was cuddled up next to me.
Suddenly, a mouse ran across my living room. Suzie wasn't phased and she didn't bat an eye... 🤦🏻♀️
“OH NO! I DID NOT JUST SEE A MOUSE,” I thought. 😰
I got up to hunt.
I looked in:
✔ the kitchen cabinets…. Rat droppings
✔ underneath long draperies…. TONS of Rat droppings
✔ underneath TV entertainment center…. Rat droppings
✔ pantry floor…. Rat Droppings
✔ crawl space…. Rat Droppings
The clues were all there – I just didn’t continuously investigate to know that there was a problem. In fact, UNTIL I saw a mouse running in my living room I thought all was well.
Key Takeaway
We often think that our cyber security program is effective in keeping out the bad actors. However, we often don’t investigate until the problem is in plain sight.
Additional Thoughts
Just like rat droppings, hidden threats and cyber attacks can go unnoticed for an extended period, allowing malicious actors to operate behind the scenes. Your cyber security program should be continuously active to defend against ongoing threats.
Rats hide their pellets as a survival tactic. Similarly, cyber attackers use various tactics to conceal their activities such as malware, encryption, and obfuscation.
Implementing measures to prevent rat infestations, like sealing entry points, is analogous to implementing cybersecurity controls and best practices to reduce the likelihood of an attack.
Routine inspections for rat pellets can help prevent an infestation from becoming a significant problem. Similarly, regular security audits, vulnerability assessments, and penetration testing can identify and address cybersecurity weaknesses before they are exploited by malicious actors.
Just as there should be a plan for addressing rat infestations when they are discovered, businesses should have an incident response plan in place to effectively respond to cyber incidents when they occur.
My Ending
Did I get rid of the mice?
Absolutely. BUT, my initial incident response plan failed. I ended up spending hundreds of dollars on pest services. Just like cyber security, early investigation and continuous monitoring would have helped me quickly recover from this problem BEFORE it got out of control.
Or MAYBE if Suzie had earned her keep I would have known sooner?? Blasted cat…. it's definitely her fault!
Invest in your company's cyber security. It is the most proactive thing you can do to ensure the safety of your people and digital assets.
If you'd like to know more about cyber security for your higher ed institution, I can help!
That's All For Now!
Remember, Romans 3:23!