Another year is nearly closing out so now is the time to start taking stock of your progress and plan for things to come. Whatever small hops or large leaps you made in your organization’s security this past year, write it down, quantify it where possible, and give yourself a pat on the back.

Maybe this year:

• You practiced great security hygiene.
• Strived for consistency by following approved standards.
• Built in layers of security controls to fortify the environment.
• Closed out outstanding security risks.
• Fixed critical vulnerabilities more quickly than last year.
• Read advisories to stay on top of new threats.

As we get ready to march into 2024, stop and take a few minutes to gauge your progress. What new security controls are in place this year that weren’t in place last year? Did your security practices tighten up? Did your vulnerability management and patch management processes get better? Are patches being applied more quickly than in the past? Are you educating users more often? Or did you find more gaps and need to get a plan in place to reset in 2024?

Keeping your organization secure will always be a complex and intricate web but continuing to strive to be better and do better each day should be the goal. Give yourself credit for all the work put in this year but remember, in this complicated world of cybersecurity, there is always a lot more to do! Plan your annual penetration tests, launch a more robust third-party evaluation process, finally setup that Tabletop Simulation you have been putting off. We are here to help if you need it.