There is no end to the volume and type of malware out there in cyberspace. For a very long time, organizations were aware that viruses could attack their data, render it corrupted and unusable. They were also aware that malware was used to steal data and use it for–primarily–monetary gain. Sell off banks of credit card numbers, steal identities, re-sell Social Security numbers, etc.
When it comes to smaller and medium sized businesses, anything that distracts from the day to day concerns about bringing in revenue tends to fall by the wayside. With that in mind, we have put together a list of seven things that a small business needs to prioritize if you want to keep your business up and running. Remember, a cyber attack on your data security could be the biggest threat to your revenues that you face, even more serious than a recession or a pandemic
No matter how much people hear “data safety,” they still can get sloppy about their cybersecurity. One of the reasons is that there are so many constant reminders that the warnings just become that much more background noise. Today, let's do a quick review of the ones you hear most about ( and most likely to forget about) Passwords.
Looking for a few ways to quickly protect your data and IT infrastructure from cybercriminals? Here are two great places to start. The first is so obvious that almost everyone overlooks it, especially in smaller companies where there is little time for proactive training on any topic.
Like most small business owners, unless you hit the lottery and started capitalizing your business all by yourself, you probably have some key shareholders who serve on your Board of Directors. You may also be finding that they are increasingly concerned about strategies to assess risk management. Most small businesses tend to overlook risk management issues—they usually just don’t have the time. Every minute is spent building the businesses and making sales. Operations and sales consume 120 percent of a small business owner’s time. In this e-guide, we’ll do a quick run-through of some topics that you may wish to address with your board as you collaborate to protect your business from cybercrime, as well as other negative events.
If you started your small business with an inheritance, great news! Congratulations. But most likely you have a board of directors; initial investors whose focus is on the long term success of the company, on strategies for future growth and protection of their investment. Part of their concern will be threats and risks to the present business. Here are two final topics that you, and they should be focussing on when making strategic risk management plans.
We’ve been talking about how your Board and shareholders have a vested interest in understanding and overseeing how your company will defend itself against the effects of cybercrime. Here are two more areas where you will need to have plans and your board should be focused on how they will be handled
For small business owners, it may seem your daily energy is caught up with just keeping the doors open and revenues coming in. However, unless you were very fortunate when you started up, you have a board of directors; most likely initial investors whose focus is on the long-term success of the company and on strategies for future growth. Part of their concern will be threats and risks to the present business. A particular concern may be the risks to the business in the case of a cyber-attack. Small businesses are just as vulnerable to cyber attacks as large companies. However, they are far less likely to have the resources to recover.
We’ve been talking about social media as a good way to market if you're a small business. Facebook , in particular, can be useful not just as a marketing tool, but as a platform that can serve as your website. If you don’t have a website, Facebook offers a way to have a “faux” website. It can provide basic information about your goods and services, and it can be easily updated. Unlike a website, it takes no web skills to change the content of your Facebook page. So at the very least, this is a pretty safe way to get into the shallower waters of social media. It is important to remember to update your Facebook page. Leaving it to get stale doesn't send a good message. If you don’t care enough to keep it up to date what does that say about how you run the rest of your business?
Pay any attention to social media? Think it's just a pastime to use up your monthly data allotment? Well, it can be just that. But it can also be a good marketing tool, especially for a small business that has a limited budget for marketing. For many very small operations, sometimes even building a website is a step too far. Many small businesses, especially individual sole proprietorships, may not have their own website. Social media platforms can become your de facto website, and make a pretty good stand-in for a small website. This can be especially true if your website is only informational. (you aren't actually using a website to sell products) Also for the provider of services, say legal, writing, etc, social media platforms may be just enough for you.
You will agree that having passwords to access your IT devices, networks and data is the first step to securing your business data. However, having passwords is not enough. The passwords have to be strong and difficult to detect or hack into. A lot of ‘smart’ devices today such as phones, tablets, and laptops come with facial recognition and fingerprint sensors that can be used in lieu of passwords. But what happens when you don’t have biometric security measures? You need to ensure that your passwords are strong and also maintain good password hygiene.
If the lock to your home’s main door breaks, do you fix it or just let it be? My guess is, you would get a locksmith to fix it for you at the earliest. And, what do you do if you lose the key? Use the spare key, if you have one, to get into your home, right? The situation is kind of similar when it comes to security patches and updates for your software programs. Credible software manufacturers make sure the software programs they develop offer an acceptable level of data security. However, no software is perfect, and knowing this well, cybercriminals constantly work to find vulnerabilities in popular software programs that they can exploit to gain access to your data. Security patches and software updates work to prevent this by fixing or patching the vulnerabilities.
We all know that basic hygiene is a must to lead a healthy life. Did you know that the same rule applies to IT as well? There’s something known as cyber hygiene that plays a key role in keeping your business healthy from the IT perspective. So, how do you ensure your business doesn’t fail when it comes to cyber hygiene? Here are a few tips.
One of the popular internet scams that has been doing the rounds since 2017 is the one about “Free Internet”. This scam seems to resurface and somehow manages to claim quite a few unsuspecting victims. Here’s how they catch you.
Who doesn’t like online shopping? Online shopping has opened up a whole new world to us. Get whatever you want, whenever you want, without wandering from store to store. It doesn’t matter if it is too hot to venture outside or if there’s a blizzard out there, you do your shopping from the comfort of your couch and the stuff at your doorstep. You get great deals, some are better than in-store specials. But, did you know cybercriminals love the concept of online shopping as much as you do. Cybercriminals are exploiting the growing popularity of online shopping to cheat unsuspecting buyers through techniques such as phishing, malware injection, etc. Here are a few tips that may work to keep you safe from being a target of cybercriminals as you shop online.
In one of the most common poisoning attacks, the attacker poisons the DNS Cache with the aim of leading visitors to a fake website. In a DNS cache poisoning case, the attacker gains control of the DNS server and then manipulates cache data such that anyone typing the URL of the actual website is redirected to the fake one. This could be a phishing site where the attacker would have carefully laid out a trap to capture the unsuspecting victim’s personal data or secure information. For example, the visitor thinks they are logging into their bank’s website online, but are actually on the attacker’s phishing site, where they enter the login credentials.
Data poisoning by way of logic corruption, data manipulation and data injection happen when the attacker finds a way to access your data set. The kind of poison attack varies depending on the level of access the attacker is able to achieve Here’s what you can do to ensure such access is prevented.
Smart technology is everywhere. Not just in our offices, but even in our day-to-day lives with tools like Google Home and Alexa becoming commonplace. With technology becoming smarter every minute, the risks are increasing by the minute as well. Cybercriminals are finding new ways to corrupt our IT networks to disrupt our businesses, hold our data hostage and even clear our personal bank accounts. Some of the more overt, commonly known acts of cybercrime include hacking, phishing, and ransomware attacks. This blog discusses a lesser-known cybercrime--Poison attacks.
Employee training will form a big part of the cybersecurity initiative that you will take on as an organization. You need to train your employees to identify and respond correctly to cyberthreats. Here are some employee training best practices that you can make a part of your cybersecurity training program.
Create an IT policy handbook
Make sure you have a handbook of your IT policy that you share with every new employee, regardless of their position in the company. This IT policy handbook must be provided to everyone--right from the CEO to the newest intern in your organization. Also, ensure this handbook is consistently updated. IT is evolving at great speed and your handbook must keep up
Make cybersecurity training a part of your official training initiatives
Cybersecurity training should be a part of your corporate training initiatives for all new employees. You can also conduct refresher sessions once in a while to ensure your existing employees are up-to-date on the latest cyberthreats. At the end of the training session, conduct tests, mock drills, certification exams. Good training includes assessment. Provide follow up training for those who need it. This strong emphasis on training will ensure your employees take cybersecurity seriously.
Day zero alerts
As discussed, the cybercrime landscape is constantly evolving. Every day, cybercriminals are finding new vulnerabilities to exploit, and new methods to steal your data or to hack into your system. Day zero alerts are a great way to keep your employees updated. Has a new security threat been discovered or has an important plug-in released for the optimal functioning of a browser? Send an email to everyone spelling out clearly what the threat is and what they can do to mitigate it. Then, follow up to verify they took the necessary steps.
Let your employees know who to contact in the event of any IT related challenges. This is important because someone troubleshooting on the internet for a solution to something as simple as a zipping up a file could end up downloading malware accidentally.
Considering the serious ramifications brought on by cybercrime attacks, it makes sense for organizations to strengthen their first line of defense against cybercriminals--their own employees.
Formulating strong IT policies and laying down the best practices for your staff to follow is one of the best ways to prevent your business from becoming a victim of cybercrime. In this blog, we explore the various areas your IT policy should ideally cover.
Passwords: Your IT policy should cover
Personal devices
Cybersecurity measures
Document the cybersecurity measures that you have in place for your business. This should include your digital measures such as the software you have deployed to keep malware out--like anti-virus tools, firewalls, etc., and also the physical measures such as CCTV systems, biometric access controls, etc.,
Another example of a good practice is how you handle employee turnover. When someone quits your organization or has changed positions, how is the access issue addressed? Spell out the rules and regulations regarding the removal of a user from the network, changing passwords, limiting access, etc.
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