Many small business owners are mistaken in their belief that it’s only the bigger companies that are targeted by hackers. But while the large companies tend to make the news more often, the truth is that smaller companies make easier targets, and tend to be attacked more frequently. Hackers prefer small businesses since they often have less stringent security measures in place and tend to be easier to breach compared to big name brands that can afford huge security measures. So, what can you do to prevent and spot potential cyberattacks on your business?
Set Up a Firewall:
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A firewall is either software or hardware that is designed to be used as the first line of defense against malware and other malicious attacks on your company’s network. Setting up a firewall is highly recommended as one of the first things that you should do to ensure that your company is protected against cybercrime, since it provides a secure barrier between your business and any criminals looking to gain unauthorized access.
Spot Phishing Attempts:
Phishing attacks are a common method used by hackers to gain unauthorized access into secure systems by preying on unsuspecting business owners or members of staff. In a phishing attack, you might get an email that appears to be from your business bank, for example, asking you to sign into your account. But the reality is that the email has really come from a cybercriminal, and once you enter your username and password into the link in the email, you’ve given this information over to a hacker who now has access to your finances. A simple way to spot and prevent phishing attacks on your business is to verify the sender before carrying out any actions or replying to an email. You can easily do this by contacting the sender using another means to check that the email is from them, or looking up the email address that the email has been sent from using Nuwber.
Create Strong Cybersecurity Policies:
Good cybersecurity policies should be put in place to ensure that everybody in your business understands what their responsibilities are when it comes to preventing and spotting cybercrime. Often, hacking attempts and cyberattacks occur as the result of small human errors that could have easily been prevented, such as writing passwords down on post-it notes or sharing credentials. Make sure that all employees stick to a strict set of rules when it comes to who accesses secure data, where data is stored, how long it is held for, and how employee passwords are set and managed.
Use a VPN for Working Outside of the Office:
With remote working culture more widespread than ever before, in the future we can expect to see a lot more employees working from outside of the office. However, while this can be very beneficial to both companies and workers, there is the disadvantage that comes with using networks that might not be as secure as the one installed in the workplace. Because of this, it is a wise idea to ensure that every employee who accesses company networks, systems or data outside of the office uses a VPN. A VPN or virtual private network will encrypt the traffic going to and from the device, preventing hackers from gaining access.
Finally, educating your employees and keeping them up to date on the latest in cybersecurity is one of the best tools against cybercrime in your small business.
