Cybercrime has become a growing concern for businesses across the world. Whether you’re a multinational corporation or a small business, it is important to understand that cybercriminals are always looking to exploit vulnerabilities.
Smaller companies have started to realize this and now take proactive measures about cybersecurity. But what does this mean? And how can your company begin taking steps towards protecting itself from attacks? In today’s blog post we will discuss 4 essential cybersecurity measures for any business owner so that they can start improving their security posture! It is estimated that nearly more than 70 percent of victims of the cyber attacks were small businesses.
Small businesses are attacked more often than corporates because the smaller company’s data is worth more and can be sold on the black market. Larger enterprises generally have enough data in their networks that could be stolen, but small businesses present even less of a challenge to hackers and are much simpler to breach. small businesses get hacked just like any other business, and network security is important for preventing issues.
One of the leading causes of SMB attacks is a lack of time, expertise, and budget for security. There are many reasons why small businesses don’t always safeguard themselves adequately against cybercriminals. These include not having an IT specialist, insufficient employee training, postponing of security updates, failure to safeguard endpoints.
Here are 4 cybersecurity best approaches for businesses you should start implementing today.
1.Firewall and VPNs
A firewall is a gatekeeper between the internet and your computer, preventing malware, viruses, or other threats from damaging your hard drive and files. Setup and maintain your firewall devices to ensure they stay fully functional at all times.
Additionally, many organizations are planning to implement an internal firewall for additional protection and usage of Virtual private networks to stay anonymous online. A VPN masks your and keeps activity protected on the internet. It is also important for employees working from home to have a firewall installed on their respective networks. Small businesses are targets for many attacks because their security is often not as good.
2.Educate all employees
When operating an SMB, employees, and staff often wear many hats and all of them must be trained on your organization’s cyber security policies. As new cyber security policies are released, they’re crucial to incorporate into your business. To enforce compliance, have employees sign off on the company’s policies and state that they agree they will abide by those policies.
Employees have a responsibility to help keep your business secure. Make sure they understand their role and any relevant policies and procedures and provide them with regular cyber security awareness training. As they outsource to third-party providers, solutions like software provide essential protection.
3.Data backup
Even though it’s very important to take every precaution, cybercriminals will always be able to find a way into your company. The Small Business Administration recommends backing up word processing files, as well as other electronic data such as financial files, databases, spreadsheets, HR records, and payables-receivables.
Make sure that you back up the data which is stored on the cloud servers. Apply a backup to your hard drive every day, and put those backups in an offsite location where fires or floods will not affect them.
4.Two-factor authentication and software updates
Regardless of how much you prepare, without adequate cybersecurity precautions, a disgruntled employee can easily compromise your important data. Matt Littleton said, “using the multi-factor identification settings on most major network and email products is simple to do and provides an extra layer of protection”.
He recommends using the personal cell number as the second factor since it is unlikely a thief will have both password and a PIN. Cyber security is a target that is constantly moving. Cybercriminals get more sophisticated every day. The only way to protect your data, by all means, is to make internet security the top priority for every employee in your company And educate yourself on the latest trends for cyber attacks and solutions to protect your data. The more information you have, the better your protection will be.
IMPORTANCE OF CYBER SECURITY
Cyber security is important because large corporations, government organizations, military systems, and others store an unprecedented amount of information on their computers.
Companies process and store sensitive information, which is why cybersecurity has become an increasingly difficult task.
Some of the most important factors for effectively protecting data include implementing security measures that are appropriate and proportional to the sensitivity level; ongoing risk assessment and monitoring; educating employees in current cybersecurity best practices; regular testing, support, and maintenance of applications; ensuring role.
As cybercrime increases in volume and sophistication, homeowners and businesses need to take steps to protect their sensitive business information. In March 2013, the nation’s top intelligence officials cautioned that cyberattacks and digital spying are the foremost threat.
CYBER SECURITY CHALLENGES
To have successful cyber security, an organization needs to coordinate its efforts throughout all of the following elements:
Network security: Protecting the network against hackers.
Application protection & security: Apps need to have regular updates and testing done with the goal of cybersecurity.
Endpoint security: Keeping company data secure is a challenge, but even more difficult with remote access. Endpoint security provides options for protecting remote access to your business network.
Data protection: Protecting company and customer information is separate from attacking networks and applications.
Identity management: A company’s cyber security can be measured through the power and privileges each individual in an organization has.
Database security: Ensuring that your network is well protected doesn’t just mean securing the data.
Organizations and the government have traditionally focused on perimeter security to protect their most crucial system components, but they neglect to defend against new threats. As cybercriminals develop more sophisticated methods to disrupt businesses, and organizational defenses struggle to keep up with the onslaught of attacks, advice from advisory organizations suggests that stakeholders should adopt a more proactive approach. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) revised its guidelines, suggesting a more data-focused approach to security instead of the traditional perimeter-based model.