Proactive Cybersecurity Investment is No Longer Optional for Nonprofits

Investing in cybersecurity before something goes wrong isn’t just an IT function — it’s an operational necessity for protecting your organization’s mission. Data breaches and other cyberattacks come with devastating costs that stretch far beyond financial impact. Along with higher insurance premiums and crisis management efforts, a single cybersecurity incident can easily erode your hard-earned trust from donors, stakeholders, and the public.

Still, while most of us recognize the value of robust digital defenses, finding the capacity to implement and maintain comprehensive cybersecurity often feels out of reach. Effective cybersecurity requires more than just installing the latest software tools, after all. It demands an ongoing, organization-wide commitment. Even when following every best practice, the risk of a cyberattack can never be fully resolved. But taking a proactive approach to security will ensure you have a process in place to limit the damage if one does.

In a climate where cyberattacks are evolving as rapidly as protective measures, you should view cybersecurity as IT. And IT is cybersecurity.

Nonprofit IT maturity and its connection to cybersecurity

Before delving into cybersecurity directly, it’s important to understand that all of your efforts ultimately depend on protecting your organization, its reputation, and its operations. This requires reaching a certain level of IT maturity. 

Investing in IT maturity creates a win-win scenario of improved security for your organization and operational efficiency for your teams. At its core, IT maturity means having clearly-defined and consistently-followed technology practices across your entire organization. This includes:

• Standardized platform usage across the organization.
• Documented processes for evaluating and approving new technologies.
• Regular staff training on proper system access and security protocols.

IT maturity yields benefits beyond enhanced security. It creates an improved experience for your staff by streamlining workflows with set processes for how to access the technologies they need to complete mission-critical work. 

Overcoming capacity challenges in cybersecurity 

Any nonprofit organization relying on digital tools to fulfill its mission recognizes the importance of strong cybersecurity. But we get it. With so many recommendations out there, you may not have the capacity to wade through the latest best practices to ensure your data is protected. 

Even organizations with dedicated IT staff may find that cybersecurity falls outside their team’s core expertise. Or you might just want a second opinion to gain a better understanding of the right approach to suit your needs. 

Ultimately, you need to reach that level of IT maturity to implement the processes required to improve your organization’s security. In cases like these, input from the right partner can provide valuable insights drawn from their collective experience, including:

• Up-to-date knowledge on emerging threats and best practices.
• Assistance developing comprehensive, tailored security strategies.
• Support for staff training to establish and maintain internal security standards.
• Ongoing system monitoring and maintenance with rapid response capabilities.

Leveraging external expertise allows organizations to overcome capacity limitations and ensure that organization-wide IT maturity remains an ongoing effort.

The ever-evolving nature of cybersecurity threats

One of the main challenges nonprofit organizations face in maintaining cybersecurity is the fact that it’s a constantly moving target. What was considered best practice just a few years ago may now be totally inadequate. As such, there’s no singular box to check. 

For example, as recently as two years ago, code-based two-factor authentication (2FA) was considered a major security win. However, attackers have since developed sophisticated methods to intercept and exploit these codes. The new best practice is key-based 2FA, which requires time to implement as well as the need to retrain your staff and update your onboarding process.

Beyond 2FA, security measures like device trust are becoming increasingly vital. This approach ensures that only approved devices can access your organization’s systems, adding an extra layer of protection even if someone on your team has their login credentials compromised.

The myth of quick-fix cybersecurity solutions

Understandably, your first instinct to manage cybersecurity might be to look for the path of least resistance. You’ve probably seen enough ads online or been to enough conferences that feature vendors pitching their cybersecurity tools as complete solutions for nonprofits. And that offer is enticing: Simply install their product, and your organization and its data will be protected in perpetuity. 

The truth is, however, there are no shortcuts or one-and-done fixes to keep your organization secure from bad actors. Instead, you should view cybersecurity as an ongoing, organization-wide investment in IT maturity that touches every aspect of your operations.

Cybersecurity insurance: A complement, not a substitute

Cybersecurity insurance also presents itself as a quick fix. Sure, it’s a wise investment, but you shouldn’t think of it as a replacement for robust cybersecurity. In fact, your ability to secure a favorable premium often depends on proving you have a strong IT team in place.

Collaborating with the right IT partner can demystify the insurance process. When you work with Personified, we can act as a translator between your organization and insurance brokers. This partnership ensures you can accurately complete cyberinsurance questionnaires while freeing up executive time for strategic priorities.

Why cybersecurity offers no 100% guarantee against threats

While implementing any cybersecurity improvements demand time and resources, they provide significantly enhanced protection against current threats. But the truth is, even if you have every best practice for preventing security breaches with the help of the right IT expertise, there’s still no guarantee your organization is 100% immune to a security incident. Attackers are constantly innovating, and they find ways to evade the newest cybersecurity protections. For example, as we shared above, once code-based 2FA was used by the majority of businesses, attackers developed methods for stealing 2FA codes. 

However, IT maturity ensures you will have processes in place before an incident occurs, making a potential breach easier to manage. Your team may be able to catch a breach sooner, or identify what happened much faster and begin work on resolving the issue. 

For example, a common attack involves compromising someone’s email account so it sends a phishing email to all their contacts. Once a person clicks on that link or enters their password, you have a security incident. The attacker will use their access to the next inbox to continue snowballing the phishing attack, sending a malicious email to that person’s entire contacts list. 

When you work with an IT operations provider like Personified, you can see an alert that someone’s account has been suspended for sending a suspicious number of emails. You’re then able to quickly secure that account and send a follow-up email to those affected explaining what happened and what to do if you clicked on the link. From there, your organization gains a reputational boost by demonstrating to your users that you’re proactively managing the issue.  

The high cost of crisis management after a breach

The costs of investing in the wrong solution or neglecting your organization’s cybersecurity far outweigh the investment needed for proactive protection. A single data breach can have devastating consequences:

• Loss of donors’ or grassroots supporters’ personal data.
• Potential interception of donor funding from compromised account information.
• Impacted fundraising capabilities, which disrupts critical operations.
• Potential legal and regulatory consequences.

In the aftermath of a breach, organizations also often find themselves forced to hire expensive crisis management firms to mitigate the reputational damage. These measures often come at a far higher cost than proactive cybersecurity investment. Even if cyberinsurance covers the cost of the lawyers and communications teams, executive-level team members often have to spend time in meetings with these consultants. The costs of a cyberattack encompasses more than just dollars. 

Moreover, the reputational damage can linger long after the initial incident. Donors, supporters, and investors may lose trust in your organization, which can have a long-lasting impact on your mission.

Embracing cybersecurity as a strategic imperative at your nonprofit organization

You should never view cybersecurity as a concern limited to IT — it’s a fundamental component of your operations. Proactive, ongoing investment in cybersecurity and IT maturity is essential for protecting your organization and its mission.

Security threats and best practices are constantly moving targets that require a long-term investment to be effective. This involves ongoing staff training, regular updates, and a commitment to continual improvement in IT practices. It’s a complex, ongoing effort, but it’s not one you and your IT team need to navigate alone.

By working with the right agency partner, your team gains access to collective knowledge of the challenges your nonprofit is facing. We can help you bridge the gap between where your organization stands and where it needs to be moving forward. If you’re ready to talk, let’s connect.