Cybersecurity: What are the risks for communities?

What are the risks of an attack?

Accidents are possible, even in France's largest cities.

Some attacks that have paralyzed government agencies for weeks or even months confirm the increased risks of cybercrime. Some particularly well-coordinated operations have even led to the complete shutdown of information systems.

In addition, there are regulatory obligations to protect public data, particularly with the implementation of the European General Data Protection Regulation, which can lead to financial and criminal penalties.

What areas of intervention can be used to limit the risks of cybercrime?

The first area of ​​intervention is based on developing a security culture within the community, as it is often through errors made by employees (downloading compromised files or providing access codes to the information system) that hackers penetrate and then disable systems.

In this area, it may be useful to contact ANSSI, which provides community organizations with methodological tools and conducts audits, as well as disseminating information on solutions and best practices.

Finally, it is becoming increasingly strategic to evolve IT governance to limit potential information system disruptions by implementing security measures such as Disaster Recovery Plans (DRPs), which allow the community's IT infrastructure to be rebuilt and restarted in the event of a disaster, and Business Continuity Plans (BCPs), which allow work to resume with minimal data loss.

These plans increasingly provide assurance of rapid recovery in the event of an attack, avoiding lengthy disruptions in operations and services. Once the needs have been defined, a DRP/BCP approach tailored to the organization's objectives and financial resources can be implemented. It will then be up to the community to choose the service provider responsible for safeguarding its digital data assets and ensuring their restoration in the event of an attack.