Irrespective of the size of your company, cyber-attacks are a real threat that every business must be equipped to prevent.
Although most data breaches often affect big corporations and government agencies, small businesses are still prone to cyber-attacks. That’s mainly because small businesses are under-protected due to the assumption that enhancing cybersecurity is expensive and out of reach. The good news is that there are various cost-effective ways to improve your small businesses’ cybersecurity.
Six ways to improve small business cybersecurity
1. Getting the correct information on cybersecurity
Most small businesses fail to secure their businesses from cyber-attacks out of the assumption that securing businesses from cyber-attacks is a preserve of large corporations and expensive. Such assumptions are rooted in a lack of proper knowledge on improving cybersecurity.
But it doesn’t have to be that way for you. You can learn more on all things cybersecurity, including how to ensure your small business’ data is safe in this cybersecurity 101 post on Chaffin Luhana’s Living Safer magazine.
2. Secure your networks
Connecting to an unsecured internet connection can give hackers an open window to your systems. Ensure that you protect your internet connection using Virtual Private Networks VPNs, which help create secure and encrypted connections that make it harder for hackers to access your networks.
If you must have an open Wi-Fi connection for your clients, ensure that you set up a separate network for them. This ensures that you do not run the risk of having potential hackers accessing your data while using your company’s network.
3. Improve your password protection
Having passwords as a protection measure for your computer network is a “no brainer.” However, having passwords alone may not be effective in securing your business’s data.
If you are looking to get the most out of your computer network’s password protection, consider implementing multi-factor authentication that requires entering additional information besides a password to access the business’s network. Changing your passwords regularly and ensuring that only a few people in your company know your password can also be an excellent way of improving your cybersecurity.
4. Update your software
One of the core reasons for software updates is to improve its security features. If your business depends on web-based applications in everyday operations, updating the software to the latest versions is critical. Outdated software usually has known vulnerabilities that hackers could take advantage of to gain access to your systems.
5. Limit data access
To reduce the chances of a cyber-attack on your business, establish policy guidelines on how employees are to handle sensitive data. One way to do this is setting user privileges to limit the number of people in your company having access to sensitive data by adding other security layers that require passwords, security questions, or encryptions to access. Additionally, ensure that the employees or the persons with access to this kind of information are aware of the sensitivity of the information at their disposal and hold them accountable for their actions.
6. Monitor personal devices
If your employees use their personal devices such as tablets, laptops, or smartphones to access company data, policies must be implemented to enhance data security. The guidelines can include allowing your company’s network administrators to install monitoring software, call for password changes, and push automatic security updates on all devices used to access the company network. However, you must ensure that you do not invade your employee’s privacy when implementing your policies and should be done with their consent.
Final words
No matter the size of your business, improving the security of your system should be a priority. There is a common misconception that improving a business’s cybersecurity is an expensive undertaking. However, the tips highlighted in this post demonstrate that you can improve your business’s cybersecurity without breaking the bank.
