Insurers are increasingly looking forward to streamlining their digital workflows, and ServiceNow acts as a platform for accommodating the same.
However, considering the fact that insurers house substantial sensitive data and need to ensure service provision without risking fraud or theft, it’s critical that they lend a thought to the security of their ServiceNow implementations.
ServiceNow’s security is paramount to enable seamless and secure data exchange, improve accessibility of information, and create a balance between protection and user-friendliness.
It’s here that ServiceNow implementation partners can help insurers determine how best to use the system to their advantage and facilitate a smooth & secure implementation and subsequent sustenance.
How Can Insurers Strengthen ServiceNow Security?
As elucidated above, insurers must leverage the expertise of ServiceNow implementation partners to chart a successful path to securing their ServiceNow instances. To that end, here’s a rundown of the crucial measures a good partner will employ to strengthen the security of the ServiceNow platform:
Managing Software Updates
ServiceNow partners play a crucial role in ensuring the security of the ServiceNow platform through meticulous management of software updates.
Leveraging the ServiceNow Patching Program, partners keep customer instances current by applying essential patches throughout the year. These patches not only address security vulnerabilities but also provide vital performance & functional fixes.
Partners also guide insurers in periodically upgrading their ServiceNow software to take advantage of the latest features, improved performance, enhanced security measures, and usability refinements. By coordinating these upgrades, typically released biannually, partners help organizations successfully leverage ServiceNow capabilities. They utilize the Upgrade Center to facilitate planning, monitoring, and accessing historical information during the upgrade process.
Finally, partners strongly recommend insurers adhere to a regular upgrade schedule, ideally at least once a year, within the bounds of the ServiceNow End-of-Life (EOL) policy.
Protect Applications via Secure APIs
ServiceNow provides multiple secure APIs for insurers to secure their integrations with other applications with the platform. To ensure a secure API, the ServiceNow partner should maintain finely-tuned access controls for all the ServiceNow APIs. They must also establish a framework that guides customers to only have access to the data they need, thereby preventing unnecessary exposure to confidential data.
Security Logging & Monitoring
Secure logging & monitoring allows insurers to monitor all aspects of the service, including what applications are deployed, when they run, how often they are executed, the data being stored, and more. The end result is a centralized console that provides insurers with real-time visibility into how the platform is being used, as well as any security issues that may arise.
By facilitating effective security logging and monitoring, ServiceNow partners can quickly investigate security issues and take immediate steps to address them before they lead to larger problems, like data breaches, service disruptions, financial losses, or legal issues.
Penetration Testing & Vulnerability Management
It’s challenging to eliminate risks completely, but there are measures partners can take to mitigate the likelihood of security breaches.
Penetration tests, often abbreviated as “Pen Tests,” refer to a systematic and guarded process where cybersecurity experts, often known as penetration testers or ethical hackers, simulate real-world cyberattacks on the ServiceNow platform to identify vulnerabilities, weaknesses, and potential security risks.
Vulnerability management, on the other hand, refers to an efficient and ongoing process of identifying, assessing, prioritizing, and mitigating security vulnerabilities and weaknesses within the ServiceNow environment – where the ultimate goal is to reduce the risk of security breaches and ensure the platform’s overall security posture.
All of this can be facilitated via a concrete security strategy that ServiceNow experts can put in place for insurance companies.
Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery
ServiceNow is designed to provide a high degree of availability and reliability, which minimizes downtime and ensures the protection of customer data.
ServiceNow experts ensure that ServiceNow implementations meet these lofty goals through the use of our quality network monitoring tools. These tools allow experts to monitor the availability of the ServiceNow environment, offering insurers immediate notifications if there is any service degradation.
Some More Tips for Securing Your ServiceNow Platform
Here are some additional tips that are specifically relevant to insurers:
- Leverage ServiceNow’s Built-in Security Features: Take advantage of the security tools that come with ServiceNow, like role-based access control (RBAC), encryption, and auditing. These features are like your platform’s security bodyguards, ensuring your data is safe from prying eyes.
- Follow Industry-Proven Security Guidelines: For insurers, it’s essential to stick to the best security practices endorsed by experts, such as the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Cybersecurity Framework (CSF). Think of them as your security playbook—they help you guard your ServiceNow fortress effectively.
- Regularly Check Your Security Setup: Don’t forget to give your security a regular checkup! Look at your access rules, examine your security logs, and make sure your integrations are locked down tight. Keeping an eye on these details helps you catch any security weak spots before they become big problems.
How Can Xceltrait Help?
ServiceNow goes beyond security to aid business resilience. Amid such offerings, ServiceNow emphasizes the following:
- Technology & data
- Employees & customers
- Facilities and their safety & compliance
- Third parties
It’s essential that insurers safeguard these pillars to maintain their operations even in the face of disruptions and, as a result, build trust among policyholders.
All in all, ensuring the security of ServiceNow instances is non-negotiable. Favorably, insurers can rely on experts like Xceltrait to implement best practices and mitigate risks. By managing updates, protecting applications, monitoring activities, conducting tests, and planning for disruptions, we can help insurers safeguard their valuable assets.
Ready to step up your ServiceNow platform’s security and safeguard your critical operations? Let’s work together to identify vulnerabilities, mitigate risks, and ensure the resilience of your ServiceNow-powered operations. Contact us today for more information.
