CDK Global’s Joe Bell on how to defend your dealership against cyberattacks

Cybersecurity has been a concern for many car dealers after an increased number of malware and ransomware attacks, however, many automotive retailers are now looking more seriously into security measures and precautions to protect their systems. CDK Global recently released their inaugural State Of Cybersecurity In The Dealership and Joe Bell, Vice President of IT Solutions and Global Network Architecture, joins us now to discuss the report’s findings and give his recommendation on ways to further protect against these cyberattacks.

With the number of cyberattacks seen across various landscapes and industries, Bell says CDK Global wanted to better understand how car dealers are contemplating their investments and risks mitigations going into the next year.

Bell says people are very much aware of cyberattacks, but people are not taking enough precautions to protect themselves. For the automotive industry, there is an escalation of cyberattacks in the dealer market. Regardless of your commercial size, every car dealer needs to have a plan in place.

CDK Global has created a three-tier preventive, responsive, and employee-facing plan. The preventive plan is to make sure your dealership has the proper risk mitigations in effect, as well as making sure you provide training for associates and have backups in place. After you have your preventive plan ready, the second tier is the protection mechanism. If cyberattacks get through, car dealers will have the third pillar which is response. Having a comprehensive understanding of all three pillars is critical for dealers.

The pandemic has changed the way business is conducted in the automotive market. Bell says because of that, cybersecurity measures need to modernized with the way we’re doing business in the marketplace.

To find out more, please visit CDK’s State of Cybersecurity in the Dealership | CDK Global.

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