Taking steps to protect Intellectual Property against cyber threats

Taking steps to protect Intellectual Property against cyber threats - 

setting a common cybersecurity agenda for the startup and investor ecosystem 

‍

Incubators are the greenhouses for new knowledge-intensive companies, and together with investors, they create an environment that stimulates knowledge sharing. Sweden has well over 40 academic incubators and 30 science parks with different orientations, and together, they play a crucial role in nurturing the growth of startups, promoting innovation, and driving economic development. The critical role that incubators play, in addition to the large Intellectual Property values that the incubated companies represent, makes them attractive targets for threat actors. 

‍

To address Intellectual Property's dependence on cybersecurity and ensure that incubators can continue to provide a supportive, secure, and competitive environment for startups, Sting is introducing a cybersecurity component to the Intellectual Property Strategy program that we support all our entrepreneurs with. Cybersecurity should not be treated as a separate issue; on the contrary, the module Five Foundational Cybersecurity Controls will become an integrated part of Sting’s Intellectual Property Strategy, alongside other components of the strategy.

‍

While every company needs a cybersecurity strategy tailored to its specific challenges and needs, there is a general cybersecurity threat that every company should address. To help startup companies and investors get started on their cybersecurity journey, we have outlined five foundational cybersecurity controls, together with the Sting alumni company Yubico and other experts and investors, that we encourage all companies to implement at every step of their growth journey, from startup to scale-up to thriving business.  

‍

On the one hand, the Five Foundational Controls will help startups implement basic cybersecurity hygiene in a resourceful manner; on the other hand, they will help investors ask the right questions and initiate a constructive dialogue as part of their due diligence. By having incubators, startup companies, and investors aligned on a basic set of criteria, we hope to create a consistency and clarity that defines a shared agenda that will fundamentally improve the competitiveness of the startup and investment ecosystem with respect to digital resilience.

‍

The Five Foundational Controls include: 

‍

1. Use phishing-resistant multi-factor authentication to access IT systems
2. Limit users’ access rights to the minimum required to perform their role
3. Keep software, operating systems, and security solutions updated 
4. Build a cybersecurity culture through frequent training and awareness 
5. Back up all business-critical data and test recovery procedures

‍

Visit Yubico's blog for more in-depth information on the five foundational controls and click here for more information on Sting’s program.  

‍