OCSRC Blog

Avoiding cyber security mistakes

People make mistakes... all the time. It's inevitable, it's difficult to fix with technology and represents at least one step in the majority of successful breaches. Technology helps people and cyber security makes sure technology is less likely to help people make mistakes.

Securing the supply chain

In big organisations, cyber security has often reached a level of maturity where the “low hanging fruit” have been addressed. The next big challenge is to understand the risk that comes from the supply chain, which is populated with far smaller businesses.

Recognising common scams

This week's theme for European Cyber Security Month is recognising cyber scams, so I thought I'd join their efforts to "to educate the general public on how to identify deceiving content in order to keep both themselves and their finances safe online".

Securing your people

Who do you invite through your security? Which documents bypass your controls? Who is looking over your shoulder? Security isn't just about the tech, it's about the people who use it too…

Making security advice usable

With increasing numbers of millennials turning to self employment, what impact might this have on SME cyber security?

GDPR and Cyber Security: Putting Data in the Cloud

Small businesses don’t know which parts of the cloud are secure enough to collaborate through. With the support of Piers Clayden, of Clayden Law, we explore what might be hiding in those Ts and Cs we all choose not to read.

GDPR and Cyber Security: Bring Your Own Device

Separating roles in bring your own device (BYOD) environments: what if voluntary organisations can’t segregate their IT use... because the volunteers own all the equipment?

GDPR and Cyber Security: Mailing List Consent

Maintaining services in a changing legal environment: Any charity or club might have to rethink what they're doing with their personal data. Not collecting data is a legitimate cyber security measure, but good security isn't intended to be obstructive.

Like a rabbit in the screenlight

I already knew from my research that the pressure to do good security was just one of many. I knew that the advice offered didn’t fit the business reality. We may ‘only’ be talking about passwords, updates and config… but security really is as hard in any context. So what are the 5 realities even a cyber security expert experiences?

OCSRC's beginnings...

Pragmatic cyber security for complex supply chains and the SMEs that live there. A reflection on how my research has influenced the way OCSRC works.