How to protect your company with the shared responsibility model?

Cybersecurity is no longer just a priority on your company's agenda; it has become a fundamental pillar for its survival. As more organizations move their operations to the cloud, protecting digital assets is becoming increasingly crucial.

In this context, the shared responsibility model, used by platforms like Microsoft 365, emerges as a key strategy for implementing effective security measures. This approach establishes that both the cloud service provider and the organization itself have specific responsibilities in protecting data, systems, and confidential information.

But what exactly does this model involve, and how can you apply it to your business to reduce risks? In this article, we'll explain what the shared responsibility model is and what steps you can take to safeguard your company from cyber threats.

The Shared Responsibility Model Explained Simply

When it comes to cloud security, think of it like living in an apartment building. The building manager is responsible for maintaining the structure, keeping common areas safe, and ensuring everything functions properly. However, inside your apartment, the responsibility is yours — locking the door, installing a secure lock, and protecting your belongings.

Cloud security works in a similar way. The shared responsibility model clearly divides security tasks between the cloud service provider and your business to ensure comprehensive protection.

What Does Your Cloud Provider Manage?

For example, in the case of Microsoft 365, Microsoft takes responsibility for securing the core infrastructure. This includes:

1. Protecting data centers.
   
   
2. Maintaining network security.
   
   
3. Regularly applying security patches to block emerging threats.

In addition, Microsoft uses advanced encryption to protect your data both in transit and at rest. They also ensure compliance with international security standards, conduct regular audits, and employ advanced threat detection systems to respond quickly to any incidents.

What is Your Responsibility as a Business?

This is where your role comes in. As a Microsoft 365 user, your company is responsible for securing what happens within your systems and accounts. This includes:

1. Setting up strong access controls to ensure only authorized individuals can access sensitive information.
   
   
2. Choosing secure authentication methods, such as Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA).
   
   
3. Defining security settings that align with your company's specific needs.
   
   
4. Implementing secure password policies and protecting account credentials.
   
   
5. Monitoring data sharing practices and training your team to follow security best practices.
   
   
6. Assessing whether additional security tools are needed to enhance protection.
   
   

In short, Microsoft ensures the "building" is secure, but protecting what happens inside your "apartment" is your responsibility. Adopting this approach will help you keep your data and systems safe from cyber threats.

Read more:  What is a Cyberattack?

How to Effectively Implement Security Measures

The best way to start protecting your business is by assessing how secure it currently is. A useful tool for this is Microsoft Secure Score, which identifies existing security gaps and highlights those that require immediate attention.

Once you have this information, create a clear plan to address those issues by setting priorities and deadlines for each action. To ensure everything runs smoothly, establish a dedicated security team to oversee the process and maintain effective communication within your organization so everyone stays informed about updates and potential risks.

Authentication and Access Management: A Key Step to Protect Your Business

Securing access to your systems is crucial, and one of the most effective ways to do this is by implementing strong authentication methods.

Start by enabling Entra ID's (formerly known as Azure AD) default security settings. For best results, begin with a pilot program involving your IT team to test and refine the implementation before rolling it out company-wide.

When setting up Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), it’s best to prioritize apps like Microsoft Authenticator instead of SMS codes, as these options offer stronger security.

To ensure a smooth adoption process, prepare clear training materials for employees and maintain open communication throughout the rollout.

How to Implement MFA Gradually

For a smoother implementation, it's best to introduce MFA in phases:

1. Start with your IT team and administrative staff, as they can troubleshoot technical issues and guide other employees through the process.
   
   
2. Next, extend MFA to department managers, who can support their teams during the transition.
   
   
3. Continue with the rest of your staff, applying MFA gradually to avoid disruptions to daily operations.
   
   
4. Finally, include external contractors to ensure everyone accessing your systems is protected.

This step-by-step approach will help minimize resistance to change and ensure a seamless adoption of stronger security practices.

Access Management: Who Can Do What?

Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) is an excellent way to define who has permission to access what. Start by documenting the roles and responsibilities within your company. Then, create role groups that align with those functions.

Key Recommendations:

1. Limit Global Administrators to only two or three trusted individuals.
   
   
2. Clearly define roles for Security Administrators, Compliance Administrators, and Department Administrators.
   
   
3. Apply the principle of least privilege, granting each person only the access they genuinely need to perform their job.
   
   

This approach will help you maintain control over your systems without unnecessarily exposing sensitive information.

How to Protect Your Company's Data

Protecting your company's information isn't just a good practice — it's essential. The first step is knowing exactly what data you have and how sensitive it is. Conduct a thorough review of your systems and identify key information such as:

1. Personal data of employees and customers (PII).
   
   
2. Financial records and any other important economic information.
   
   
3. Intellectual property and strategic business documents.
   
   

Classifying this information will allow you to build a strong and effective data protection strategy.

Data Classification: Organizing Your Information

A great way to organize your data is by creating a labeling system that indicates the confidentiality level of each type of information. For example:

1. Public: Information that can be shared without risk.
   
   
2. Internal: Data intended only for use within the company.
   
   
3. Confidential: Sensitive information that requires enhanced protection.
   
   
4. Highly Confidential: Critical data that must be handled with maximum care.

To simplify this process, you can configure automatic labeling policies in platforms like Microsoft 365. This feature automatically classifies certain types of data based on their characteristics, reducing human error and saving your team valuable time.

Data Loss Prevention (DLP): Prevent Your Information from Leaking

Protecting your data isn’t just about following best practices — it’s also about using specialized tools that enhance security. In addition to Microsoft 365’s DLP policies, integrating advanced solutions like TecnetProtect can make a significant difference in safeguarding your information.

TecnetProtect offers a comprehensive Data Loss Prevention (DLP) solution that goes beyond basic configurations. This tool allows you to:

1. Monitor data flow in real time across your organization to detect potential data leaks.
   
   
2. Create customized policies tailored to your business's specific needs.
   
   
3. Generate instant alerts when attempts are made to share confidential information improperly.
   
   
4. Provide detailed security incident reports to enable a fast and effective response.
   
   

For example, you can configure rules to control:

1. Emails to prevent sensitive data from being accidentally sent.
   
   
2. Teams conversations to reduce the risk of exposing confidential information.
   
   
3. Documents in SharePoint and other collaboration platforms to protect critical files.
   
   

One of TecnetProtect’s biggest advantages is its ability to automate these actions, reducing your IT team's workload while ensuring security policies are consistently and effectively enforced.

3-2-1 Backup Strategy: Your Safety Net

Protecting your data isn’t just about preventing loss — it’s also about ensuring you can recover it quickly if something unexpected happens. This is where the 3-2-1 backup strategy, combined with an advanced solution like TecnetProtect, becomes essential.

TecnetProtect automates and manages your backups to ensure your data is always protected and available. This powerful tool offers:

1. Automated backups that run regularly without manual intervention.
   
   
2. Automatic data integrity checks to confirm your backups are complete and error-free.
   
   
3. Fast and flexible recovery, allowing you to restore specific files or entire systems in minutes.
   
   
4. Hybrid storage options, combining local and cloud backups for enhanced security.

What Is the 3-2-1 Backup Strategy?

This widely recommended approach ensures your data remains safe and recoverable:

1. Keep three copies of your data: one primary and two backups.
   
   
2. Store these copies on two different types of media, such as physical hard drives and cloud storage.
   
   
3. Maintain one copy offsite to protect against physical disasters like fires or theft.

Thanks to TecnetProtect's automation, you can rest easy knowing your data is backed up consistently without requiring manual effort from your team. Additionally, its monitoring system alerts you if any backup encounters issues, ensuring you always have a reliable copy available.

With TecnetProtect, you’re not only safeguarding your information from leaks and losses — you’re also ensuring fast recovery in case of unexpected incidents, minimizing downtime and reducing the impact on your business operations.

Read more:  What is the 3-2-1 Backup Strategy?

How to Set Up Effective Threat Protection

Protecting your business from digital threats isn’t just about installing antivirus software and forgetting about it. To keep your data and systems secure, it’s crucial to configure advanced tools that help prevent attacks before they become a serious problem.

Configuring Safe Links in Microsoft Defender

One of the best ways to protect yourself from malicious links is by enabling the Safe Links feature in Microsoft Defender. This tool scans URLs in real time whenever someone attempts to click on them — even if the threat is activated after the message has been delivered to your inbox.

To make this protection effective:

1. Enable URL scanning in all Microsoft Office applications.
   
   
2. Disable the option that allows users to bypass security warnings.
   
   
3. Configure Safe Links to scan URLs at the moment they are clicked, ensuring protection against delayed-action attacks.

Configuring Safe Attachments

To protect your business from dangerous files without slowing down productivity, enable Safe Attachments with the Dynamic Delivery option. This feature scans files for malware before they reach your systems without delaying email delivery.

For optimal protection:

1. Set the system to automatically block any file containing malware.
   
   
2. Extend this protection to environments like SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams.

Additionally, strengthen your anti-phishing defenses by creating specific protection measures for high-risk individuals within your company, such as executives and finance team members, who are often prime targets for these attacks.

How to Maintain Effective Security Management

Cybersecurity isn’t something you set up once and forget about. To keep your systems truly secure, it's important to establish a regular review and maintenance plan.

A smart practice is to organize weekly tasks to ensure everything is working properly:

1. Week 1: Review user access and permissions to ensure only authorized personnel have access to sensitive information.
   
   
2. Week 2: Assess your current security policies and make adjustments as needed.
   
   
3. Week 3: Verify that your company complies with relevant regulations and security standards.
   
   
4. Week 4: Analyze security metrics and performance indicators to identify areas for improvement.

This structured cycle will help you maintain strong security practices without neglecting other business priorities.

Security Training: Your Best Defense

A secure company doesn’t just rely on technology — people play a crucial role too. Training your team is essential to help them avoid falling victim to threats like phishing or credential theft.

At TecnetOne, we know that a solid security strategy starts with well-informed employees. That's why we offer cybersecurity training services designed to help your team recognize and respond effectively to digital threats. Our sessions are tailored to your company's specific needs, ensuring that each employee receives appropriate training based on their role and exposure to risks. Some key practices we recommend include:

1. Security induction sessions for new employees, covering internal policies and best practices for data protection.
   
   
2. Department-specific training, focusing on the particular risks that each team faces.
   
   
3. Regular phishing simulations to assess how prepared your employees are and improve their awareness of these types of threats.
   
   

At TecnetOne, we help you build a strong security culture within your company, providing your team with the tools and knowledge they need to prevent incidents and proactively protect your information.

Conclusion

Cybersecurity is not a goal you achieve and forget; it's an ongoing process that requires constant attention. The threat landscape evolves every day, making it crucial to stay informed about new attack techniques and security solutions.

Success in cybersecurity isn’t about avoiding incidents altogether — it's about how effectively you can detect and respond when something happens.

Remember, protecting your business is a team effort. Regularly evaluating your systems, updating your security measures, and training your employees will help keep your business secure against constantly evolving threats and risks.