How many times have you seen cybersecurity breaches in the news in the last year? If you can recall even one time, we think that is one too many. Why? Because that one news story you might have seen represents a company that experienced significant downtime, loss of data, unplanned exposure of user information, and the list goes on. It takes a lot of time, effort, and resources to get your organization to where it is right now. Make sure you are protecting your business despite the rising threats of cybercrime.

Not Just Big Business

Cybersecurity threats are consistently evolving, and as 2019 approaches these threats will only grow in strength and maturity. Remember Equifax, where the personal data of 145 million people was stolen? Or WannaCry ransomware, where machines were locked down in more than 150 countries? Although Equifax is one of the largest credit bureaus out there, small businesses are not out of sight for cybercriminals. Sometimes these small businesses are direct targets, as cybercriminals assume they do not have strong security measures in place. According to Symantec, 43% of cyber attacks target small businesses, and the U.S. National Cyber Security Alliance found that 60% of SMB’s go out of business within 6 months of a cyber attack.

We do have good news, however, and there are ways to effectively protect your business from becoming a mark on the checklist of a cybercriminal.

Protection Methods

• Antivirus – We can’t stress this enough – it is important to have a quality antivirus in place that can not only reactively detect viruses and malware, but can actively prevent them from entering your system.
• Two-Factor Authentication – Implement two-factor authentication when an employee attempts to sign on to an internal system. When an employee goes to log in, they must confirm it is them via email or a push notification on their mobile devices as an extra precaution.
• Intrusion Monitoring – Implementing intrusion monitoring on your systems will help to detect suspicious systems and network activity. If any activity is detected, it will generate an alarm or activate an email alert to draw attention to a potential security breach. That way your IT team can always be on top of what’s going on within your system.
• Employee Training – Employees are a large target when it comes to cybercrime, as they can be tricked into clicking on things they shouldn’t, accidentally leaving room for cybercriminals to access your entire network. The more trained and informed your employees are, the more skeptical they will be about clicking on random links, accessing unprotected WiFi networks, using easy passwords/one password for everything, etc. Don’t let your employees fall victim to a cyber-attack that could infiltrate your entire organization.
• Quality IT Team – It’s important that you have a trusted IT team on your side, whether they are internal or a Managed Service Provider. Having a team that can provide you with 24/7/365 support and monitoring is key to actively detecting and preventing cybercrime attempts.

While cybersecurity breaches are hitting headlines, many businesses are taking the necessary steps to keep their organization properly protected. Don’t overlook these rising threats, be proactive in protecting your business from cybercrime.