Cyber threats are evolving at an alarming pace, and UK businesses are increasingly in the crosshairs. According to the UK Government's Cyber Security Breaches Survey, 39% of businesses identified a cyber attack in the past year, with the average cost of a breach reaching tens of thousands of pounds. Yet many organisations only think about cybersecurity after an incident has already occurred.
A cybersecurity audit is a comprehensive assessment of your organisation's security posture, identifying vulnerabilities, evaluating existing controls, and providing actionable recommendations. But how do you know when it is time to conduct one? Here are five critical warning signs that your business needs a cybersecurity audit immediately.
1. Unusual Network Activity
One of the earliest indicators that something may be wrong is unusual activity on your network. This can manifest in several ways, and recognising these signs early can mean the difference between preventing a breach and dealing with a full-scale incident.
What to Look For
- Unexpected data transfers: Large volumes of data being sent to unfamiliar external addresses, particularly outside of business hours, could indicate data exfiltration.
- Unusual login patterns: Logins from unfamiliar locations, at odd times, or from multiple locations simultaneously suggest compromised credentials.
- Spike in failed login attempts: A sudden increase in failed authentication attempts may indicate a brute-force attack in progress.
- Unknown devices on the network: Rogue devices connected to your network could be used as entry points for attackers.
Why It Matters
Unusual network activity is often the first sign of an active compromise. Attackers typically spend days or even weeks inside a network before launching their primary attack, using this time to map systems, escalate privileges, and identify valuable data. A cybersecurity audit can help you detect these intrusions early and establish proper monitoring to catch future anomalies before they escalate into full breaches.
2. Slow System Performance
While slow systems can have many causes, persistent performance degradation that cannot be explained by normal factors deserves investigation. Cyber threats often consume system resources in ways that directly impact performance.
What to Look For
- Unexplained CPU or memory usage: Cryptomining malware and other threats can consume significant processing power, slowing down legitimate operations.
- Frequent crashes or freezes: Malware can cause system instability as it interferes with normal processes.
- Slow network speeds: Bandwidth-consuming malware or data exfiltration can dramatically reduce network performance.
- Applications behaving unexpectedly: Software that suddenly behaves differently may have been tampered with or compromised.
Why It Matters
Performance issues cost your business in productivity every single day, but when the cause is malicious, the costs can be far greater. A cybersecurity audit will help you rule out or identify security-related causes of performance problems and implement solutions that protect your systems whilst improving their speed and reliability.
3. Suspicious User Accounts
User account management is a critical component of cybersecurity, yet it is one of the most commonly overlooked areas. If you have noticed anomalies in your user accounts, it is a strong signal that your security needs review.
What to Look For
- Unknown admin accounts: Accounts with elevated privileges that nobody recognises are a major red flag, as attackers often create backdoor admin accounts.
- Former employee accounts still active: Accounts belonging to people who have left the organisation provide easy entry points for attackers or disgruntled ex-staff.
- Shared credentials: Multiple people using the same login makes it impossible to track who did what and increases the risk of credential exposure.
- Excessive permissions: Users with more access than they need for their role violate the principle of least privilege and increase your attack surface.
Why It Matters
Compromised or mismanaged user accounts are involved in the vast majority of data breaches. A cybersecurity audit will review your identity and access management practices, identify risky accounts, and help you implement proper controls such as multi-factor authentication, regular access reviews, and automated deprovisioning.
4. You Have Experienced Ransomware or Phishing Attacks
If your business has been targeted by ransomware, phishing, or any other form of cyber attack, whether successful or not, it is a clear sign that your defences need strengthening. Even a failed attack reveals that your organisation is on the radar of threat actors.
What to Look For
- Phishing emails getting through: If employees are regularly receiving convincing phishing emails, your email security needs review.
- Ransomware incidents: Even if contained, a ransomware event indicates gaps in your defences that need to be addressed before the next attempt.
- Social engineering attempts: Phone calls or messages attempting to extract sensitive information from staff indicate targeted attacks against your organisation.
- Employees clicking suspicious links: If staff are falling for simulated phishing tests or real attacks, there is a training gap that needs addressing.
Why It Matters
Attackers who have successfully targeted your organisation once will almost certainly try again. A cybersecurity audit conducted after an attack helps you understand exactly how the attack occurred, what vulnerabilities were exploited, and what changes are needed to prevent recurrence. It also provides an opportunity to test your incident response procedures and strengthen them for the future.
5. Compliance Requirements Are Changing
The regulatory landscape for data protection and cybersecurity is constantly evolving. UK businesses must comply with GDPR, and depending on your industry, you may also need to meet standards such as ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials, PCI DSS, or sector-specific regulations.
What to Look For
- New regulatory requirements: Changes to industry regulations or data protection laws that affect how you handle and protect data.
- Upcoming certifications: If you are pursuing Cyber Essentials, ISO 27001, or similar certifications, an audit is an essential preparatory step.
- Client or partner requirements: Increasingly, clients and partners require evidence of security practices before entering into business relationships.
- It has been over a year since your last audit: Security landscapes change rapidly. Annual audits are the minimum recommended frequency.
Why It Matters
Non-compliance can result in significant fines, with GDPR penalties reaching up to 4% of annual global turnover. Beyond financial penalties, non-compliance damages your reputation and can result in lost business. A cybersecurity audit ensures your practices align with current requirements and identifies any gaps that need to be addressed before they become problems.
What Happens During a Cybersecurity Audit?
If any of these signs resonate with your business, here is what you can expect from a professional cybersecurity audit:
- Infrastructure review: Assessment of your network architecture, firewalls, endpoints, and cloud environments.
- Vulnerability scanning: Automated and manual testing to identify security weaknesses.
- Policy evaluation: Review of your security policies, procedures, and incident response plans.
- User access review: Assessment of identity management, authentication mechanisms, and access controls.
- Compliance mapping: Evaluation of your current posture against relevant regulatory frameworks.
- Detailed report and recommendations: A prioritised action plan with clear, practical steps to improve your security.