Easy Tips to Protect Your Small Business from Cyber Attacks
It’s a common misconception that only big companies experience cyber attacks. While these high-profile cases are the ones that make the news, it is actually small businesses that are targeted by cyberattacks more often. Due to their small size, they are often unable to recover from an attack than a larger company.
So how do you protect your small business from cyber-attacks?
Assess Your Existing Network Infrastructure
The first step in securing your systems is to undertake a comprehensive assessment of your current network. If you don’t have the resources in-house, you will need to hire a professional Managed IT Services in Bethany, OK to ensure you have the right expertise on hand.
Any gaps or vulnerabilities in your network can be detected during this assessment and patched before any cyber attackers can find them and exploit them.
As well as your infrastructure, you will need to have your IT security policies and procedures assessed to ensure that they are fit for purpose. The most secure network in the world is only as good as the employees that use it. Poor authentication and password management can leave you with huge holes in your cyber defenses. Rigorous employee training is needed to ensure they understand their role in the security of your company.
Install Anti-Virus
Installing good anti-virus software on your computers, laptops, and smartphones is a good way to detect a multitude of viruses and malware before they can do any damage. Keep the software up to date to get the very latest protection.
Keep Software Up To Date
Software developers often release updates and patches in order to keep their platforms secure. Ensure that you update all software as soon as these updates become available. Many cyber attacks happen when companies are not running up-to-date systems.
Implement a Password Policy
The stronger your password policy, the less chance your systems will be hacked in this way. Ensure employees don’t reuse passwords across different systems or use easy-to-guess passwords. A simple way to enforce this is to use a password manager and generator that employees can use so that they are not trying to remember multiple complicated passwords.
Teach Your Employees About Scams
Most people think that they can spot an email scam a mile away. Yet they aren’t always the badly spelled emails from people in other countries offering you millions of dollars. Phishing scams are becoming increasingly sophisticated and can catch even experienced employees through their use of social engineering and professional-looking emails.
It’s important to train your employees carefully when it comes to spotting these scams, and how to report them. If an employee is too scared to report something for fear of blame, then you are creating a much bigger problem for yourself in the longer term.
Conclusion
Protecting your company from cyber-attacks should be a priority. After all, cases of ransomware and phishing attacks are increasing every year. In order to get your network and policies assessed, you need to get a professional managed IT services in Bethany, OK to perform a thorough assessment of your systems and perform ongoing work to keep your network secure.
