Small and large companies can be victims of cyberattacks. In the UK, 46% of businesses have experienced a cyber attack in 2020 at least once. Large businesses (75%) are most affected. Names like Thomas Cook, British Airways, Virgin, and Tesco are only some big companies that have become victims of cybercrime in the past year. Medium businesses (65%) and high-earning charities
(57%) are not immune as well.
Because of the pandemic, data security has become an even bigger concern. Many employees are working remotely using unsecured Wi-Fi connections. On the other hand, more consumers are moving to online purchasing and ordering, providing unsecured companies with vital information.
While businesses blame remote workers and online consumers for cyber security threats, they provide just a small amount of their budget for cyber security.
Business owners and employees should be accountable when a data breach occurs. However, it is the duty of the business owner to initiate cyber security measures. To stop cybercrime before they happen to your business, here are several valuable tips.
System Assessment
Your first step is to determine the status of your company’s cybersecurity system if there is any. Confer with team leaders from concerned departments, especially IT.
Conduct an internal but informal audit of your cybersecurity systems. Know what level of security your business is implementing. Find out if you’re following a strategy to protect key company information. Be informed about what kind of defenses the company is using. If all of these are present, ask what the weaknesses of each method are and which areas need improvement.
For accountability purposes, you also need to know who’s in charge of the company’s cybersecurity. Which departments are using key data? Is the company following processes to ensure accountability? Is everybody at the company aware of cybersecurity and cyber attacks? What is being done to raise awareness?
Then, engage senior leaders, including your board of directors, investors, managers, and even your auditor and legal team. If needed, get people from the finance, operations, marketing, and human relations teams involved. Let them know the status of your company’s cybersecurity system. You and the senior leaders are the ones who will decide how to develop a solution for your cybersecurity issues.
Create a Cybersecurity Policy
Next, have the organization involved. A cybersecurity policy ensures that your business will not be prone to employee fraud.
Whether your employees work remotely or not, have them review and sign the policy. All new employees should also have it. Everyone must be accountable for protecting business data. Having a policy onboard ensures that all employees know what is expected of them regarding cybersecurity. You have to let them know that they also have a role in it.
Employees may assume that they shouldn’t be involved with cybersecurity measures in your company for a couple of reasons. Often, just because they’re not at the higher level of the company’s hierarchy, cybersecurity is not an issue. Sometimes, just because they’re not directly working with customer data, they believe cybersecurity is not of their concern.
Your cybersecurity policy should include an explanation of why it’s needed and what security protocols are in place. You should expect all employees to comply with these protocols. The policy should also include the type of resources and tools your company will use to support your employees’ compliance with the protocols.
Use Secure Internet Connections
It’s easy to ensure that your Wi-Fi connections at work are secure. The risk can occur when remote employees connect through an unsecured public internet connection. And while you can’t prevent remote employees from going to a coffee shop to have some coffee while working, you can do something about their Wi-Fi.
Purchase a virtual private network or VPN for your remote workers. They can use it to connect to public Wi-Fi networks. A VPN will encrypt the traffic from public networks and alert your employee for any signs of infection.
For more robust protection, you can also use a secure web gateway (SWG). It can perform web security functions such as access controls, web visibility, filtering, and other security measures. A company offering cyber security services can provide you with more information on how this secure connection works.
Implement the First Layer of Cybersecurity
Before you decide to get a VPN or SWG, create a checklist of what capabilities and measures you can manage in-house as the first layer of cybersecurity.
Encryption and two-factor authentication are some of the measures you can adopt in your system. Encryption protects business data stored in phones, USBs, hard drives, and other portable devices or computer hardware. It will be much easier to use them outside the company if encryption is implemented. Two-factor authentication, on the other hand, adds a layer of security to company logins. It protects your company passwords.
With these ideas in mind, you can prevent cyberattacks that can impact your business. You don’t have to worry about cybercrimes if you focus on improving your cybersecurity.