Security

The 3 Components of a Comprehensive Security Strategy [#Infographic]

Security breaches are a given in higher ed, but colleges and universities can better thwart attacks by implementing the right training, processes and technologies.

Meg Conlan-Donnelly

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Meg was an editor for the CDW family of technology magazine websites.

Storing vast amounts of student information, as well as valuable research data, colleges and universities present prime targets for hackers. According to statistics gathered for a CDW•G infographic, education was the third-most attacked sector in 2014, following healthcare and retail.

That truth should come as no surprise to the IT professionals tasked with protecting higher ed data and intellectual property: High-profile attacks on colleges and universities appear in the news regularly, and a 2015 Center for Digital Education survey found that 36 percent of higher ed IT professionals said their institution had experienced a malicious code incident in the last year.

While the security landscape seems daunting, IT teams can better safeguard campus networks by instituting comprehensive security strategies that encompass adequate training for all members of the campus community, smart policies aimed at minimizing risk, and advanced technologies that not only detect attacks but also lessen their impact.

Check out the infographic below to learn more about higher education’s three best defenses against cybercrime.