All organizations should be aware of the threat of a cyberattack and how to have strong cybersecurity. We’ve put together some tips & tricks for cybersecurity for any small or medium sized business to make sure that you are always prepared and protected.
1. Your business could become a target, it’s only a matter of time. Accept this.
Organizations that have the mindset of “when, not if” are often the most proactive in terms of security. Therefore, these are the organizations that run into the least amount of issues. Now a days, with so many things revolving around technology there are many different breaches and hacks, unfortunately this isn’t going to change. Accepting that no matter what industry your business is in, you could be a victim makes it easier to implement preventative measures to protect yourself, your employees and your clients.
2. Think before you click
Be careful what links you click on. We have all been told this before but this is one of the easiest ways to have your computer compromised. There are 79% of ransomware attacks that use phishing emails. On average, after an attacker sends the email the first user has opened it within 1:40 seconds. If you receive any suspicious emails, whether its from an unknown email address or from someone you know think before you click.
3. Ensure your employees know how to spot suspicious emails
Businesses of all sizes should spend some time training their employees on cybersecurity. There are a variety of affordable and doable options when planning this. Many cyberattacks start from an employee clicking on a link and downloading something they shouldn’t be. Training your employees to be able to recognize and avoid suspicious emails is a very important step for all organizations.
4. Maintain an integrated back-up solution
It is important to have a solid integrated back-up solution. Now a days, these back-up solutions can be automated so that your employees don’t need to manually save things throughout their day. The back-up solution can also be kept offsite. Therefore, if your workplace falls victim to any kind of disaster your data is still safe and secure. Here are 5 key practices that you should know when implementing a back-up solution.
5. Outsource to a MSP
There are a variety of benefits when using an outsourced Managed Service Provider (MSP). One of the most important ones is the level of security your organization will receive. MSPs are the experts in IT infrastructure and are kept up to date on the most recent trends in terms of cyberattacks and security. They have the proper preventative resources to lower the chance of something happening. They also have tools for back-up and recovery methods if something does ever happen. Here are some of the other key benefits of outsourcing your IT needs.
6. Make sure that your MSP has experience in cybersecurity
Cybersecurity is an area within the IT industry that most MSPs will have experience in. At the same time, don’t be afraid to ask them some questions about the topic to get a better understanding of their knowledge and experience levels.
Many small businesses don’t understand the cost that could go along with a cyberattack. According to the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, the average cost for a company to respond to a data breach is $258 per record. For a small business that has around 2000 records, a cybersecurity data breach would cost them $516,000.
7. Take the time to understand the basic concepts & terms of cybersecurity
As we have previously mentioned, there are many types of cyberattacks. If you are not in the IT industry it is not expected for you to know about and understand all of them. At the same time, there are some essential types of cyberattacks and tactics that you should be aware of. We wrote a blog post about this recently. Click here to check it out.
8. Ensure you back-up to all endpoints
Many organizations have an integrated back-up solution but they don’t back things up all the way to their endpoints. This means backing up employee’s desktops and laptops. It is only when these files are moved into a central file destination that they become backed-up. This means you run the risk of losing all your employees “work in progress files”. It was found that there are 58% of small businesses that don’t back-up to endpoints. Be sure to take the time to ensure your back-up solution is integrated properly and protects all your files no matter where they are located.