It’s hard to choose the most important aspect of a business. If there’s one that exists on its own plane, though, under which all other elements fall, it’s security. The absence of adequate cybersecurity can be costly. According to IBM and the Ponemin Institute, a data breach costs small businesses an average of almost $3 million per incident. Any good workplace security structure should defend the business’s critical data and information from malware and other cyber threats.
The internet allows businesses of all sizes to reach potentially endless amounts of consumers and provides opportunities to work with more efficiency through computer-based tools. However, a business entity cannot be online and avoid the myriad risks that are inherent to a connected world. Just as there is a criminal element that is looking to bypass a business’s security features, there is a network of cybersecurity firms that continuously keep up with cyber threats. They universally advise incorporating certain elements into any business’s cybersecurity structure. Keeping employees abreast of security implementations is such an element.
Keep Your Security Knowledge Current for All Employees
Cybersecurity topics such as risk assessment, cyber threats, threat detection and zero-trust architecture apply to so many areas of security. They show the vastness of the field and the potential for risk to enter through any number of points. Further, your data might not necessarily be corrupted or stolen, it may just disappear.
Sometimes, employee awareness when it comes to security can be lax and present the opportunity for cyber infections. They might think that simply updating their devices when prompted takes care of their security needs. Any important security information that needs to be presented should be done with an emphasis on establishing a culture of a security-conscious staff.
An email that encourages safe email practices and discusses how to avoid certain scams might be read by employees or it might simply go into the trash. A meeting seems like a better way to communicate not only the potential threat but the interconnectedness of the business’s departments. Malicious software can infiltrate company networks through a salesperson’s email and gain access to threads about billing and invoices. That information can then be used to time requests or send messages so accountants or financial officers don’t question payment requests.
Making sure that its security policies are kept updated and then updating security practices, like employee training, can help a business minimize risk. Another way is to engage the services of a cybersecurity provider.
Partner With a Security Provider
Monitoring and dealing with the myriad details of a business’s cybersecurity needs is a full-time operation. Partnering with another security provider gives a business another set of virtual eyes to help protect its data. A security provider that can monitor and detect threats, as well as advise the staff of a business on cybersecurity issues, frees a business up to focus on establishing its brand and maintaining its financial solvency.
When you have cloud file sync and share, for instance, you’ve invested in security. With cloud-based file sharing, the provider takes care of all data backups. Files that are regularly backed up in another location can be retrieved following the loss, corruption or destruction of the original files.
Require Strong Authentication for All Users
Cyber attacks often use compromised user accounts to gain access to a business’s internal servers. Requiring multi-feature authentication, like a smart card with a PIN or biometric, for every user can be an effective tool against stopping such attacks. Multi-factor authentication should be implemented, as well, for security professionals, systems administrators and all others with privileged access to systems and networks.
Prepare for Compromises
Security breaches are inevitable because the nature of the internet is for everything to be in a constant state of motion. Therefore, cyber threats are always actively searching for data. A business should be equipped with the security technology in place to detect and analyze suspicious activity and then to handle the threat accordingly.
Cybersecurity is tantamount to a business protecting its future. According to data from the Bureau for Labor Statistics, approximately 20 percent of businesses fail within the first year. By the end of the second year, 30 percent will have failed. The same data reveals that only about 25 percent of businesses make it to 15 years. Given those odds, any breach in security could prove too costly to survive. Developing sound cybersecurity features that change with the times should be the goal of any growing business as it is that business’s best and most efficient way to mitigate the risk of cyberattack.