Cyber security is no longer a luxury item for small businesses. Phishing, ransomware, data breaches, lions and tigers and bears, oh my! It shouldn’t come as a shock anymore that hackers are attacking business websites in various ways, all in order to create operational disruptions and snatch sensitive info.
Most of these type of attacks occur when companies have less than 100 employees. Small businesses have been seeing this rise in cyber-crime due to the growing digitization of business assets and access to sensitive customer information. While tech improvements are being made, more and more companies are becoming vulnerable.
If you think by simply running your anti-virus software, and having firewall protection, means you are safe then you are in for a rude awakening. While having the basics still matter, you must decide which of your assets are most at risk of a breach. Make sure your data and servers, and any other vital systems, are updated with the latest cyber security software.
Establishing a cyber security culture can pay dividends. In some cases, humans working in an office can cause as much trouble as hackers. The best security practices include frequent office training. You should run scheduled drills and stress tests to identify weak spots and ensure that data restoration and business continuity are executed to the highest degree. Your employees need to learn about the dangers of opening suspicious emails, as well as encrypting their data, having passwords on their devices that are nearly hack-proof, and limiting activity over public Wi-Fi. Remember that even the smallest breach needs to be reported to management and your IT department.
With all the Wannacry ransomware attacks happening this year, it might be wise to have cyber insurance. Investing in cyber-liability insurance can help cover you from data loss. Depending on the insurance, it can handle everything from notifying your customers about the breach, to restoring personal IDs that were affected. That kind of peace of mind is just as good as having your legal fees and other expenses covered.
