It does not matter whether your business is large or small, or what industry you operate in, you need to be concerned with cyber security. Cyber criminals do not discriminate. All companies are targets, even more so if you do not have high levels of data security in place. With that in mind, read on to discover more about where companies are going wrong with cyber security so that you can avoid these mistakes.
Assuming You’re Not A Target
The first mistake that a lot of business owners make, especially small business owners, is assuming that they are not a target. They have the “it won’t happen to me attitude.” This is the sort of attitude that will find you in huge trouble. You are a target. All businesses are targets. Do you run a small company? If so, a breach may not be as lucrative but hackers view you as an easy payday, so you are definitely at risk.
Not Having A Cyber Security Plan In Place
Your plan should be current and comprehensive. It should begin by detailing the true data security threat your company faces. You then need to outline your cyber security goals. The technical aspects of a plan are important, but the policy aspects are even more essential as most attacks leverage user behavior to open the door. Disaster recovery planning is an also part of this planning as even the mulimillion dollar security efforts of large corporations and governments have repeatedly experienced cyber security failures. No matter your security efforts, you still need to be prepared to protect your business from data loss..
Lack of Employee Training
Did you know that employees are one of the main reasons for cyber breaches? A lack of training can cause employees to make mistakes that result in hackers finding a way into your systems. All businesses need to train their members of staff on safe procedures to follow when online. Some of the basic vulnerabilities you need to go over include handling or disposing of sensitive data, opening or responding to phishing apps or emails, opening infected web pages or email attachments, and reusing passwords or choosing weak passwords.
Out of Date or Consumer Grade Firewalls
The attacks against small and midsized business networks have increased in volume, sophistication and variety. A lot of business owners underestimate the importance of having professional grade firewalls in place that match that level of sophistication and are able to distinguish between friendly and hostile traffic. The good news is that Firewalls that have advanced functions that are needed used to cost start around $10,000 and today, feature rich models cost as little as $1200.00. The boundary firewall is the critical first line to any IT security defense.
Once you have cyber security measures in place, you cannot sit still. You need to always measure the effectiveness of your efforts and continue to use data to make intelligent decisions.
Remaining Stagnant
Once you have cyber security measures in place, you cannot sit still. You need to always measure the effectiveness of your efforts and continue to use data to make intelligent decisions.
Failing to Segment Your Environment
Network segmentation is pivotal for all businesses. If you have everything, from PoS systems to self-service kiosks, on the same network, you are leaving your business exposed. After all, as soon as a hacker breaches one area of your business, they are going to have access to everything on the network.
Choosing An Unsecure Web Host
Another mistake a lot of business owners make is aligning with a poor quality web host. Here is an example of the sort of web host you should be looking for – one that has a good reputation and offers security features, such as back-ups.
Overlooking Website Security
Your website is one part of your online presence that requires a stringent security strategy put in place. If you use outdated software or you fail to choose a third party hosting provider with care, you could find yourself falling victim to an attack. Here are some great tips on securing your website.
Not Encrypting Sensitive Data
Unfortunately, it is impossible to make your business 100% secure, no matter how hard you try. Therefore, you should not focus all of your efforts on keeping hackers out. You also need to pay some attention to what would happen if cyber criminals found their way in. By encrypting your data, you ensure that it cannot be read. Therefore, while hackers may have breached your system, they cannot steal any sensitive data because it is in an unreadable code.
Thinking it is only about malware
There is no denying that malware is something that a lot of criminal hackers use as a part of their attack. Nevertheless, once they have found their way into your system, there are lots of different strategies that can be utilised to exploit your network. Over the years, cyber criminals have certainly become more sophisticated. This is why it is a wise idea to work alongside an ethical hacker so you can determine any vulnerabilities in your system, enabling you to patch them up before a genuine hacker is able to exploit them.
Bad Passwords
This is one of the biggest sins of them all, and there are no excuses for having a bad password. You always need to change the default passwords you have been supplied with, and your new password should contain numbers, upper and lower case letters, and special characters. Plus, make sure that your employees change their passwords regularly for enhanced security.
So there you have it: some of the common mistakes that a lot of businesses make when it comes to cyber security. There is no denying the very real threat of a data breach in the current day and age. No business is immune from this threat, big or small. This is why you need to ensure that you do everything in your power to protect your business and, consequently, your client base too.
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