In today’s fast paced world when technology is major disruption and making things easier for us, it can become a major threat for some of us. For every business maintaining cybersecurity has become essential these days.
The cybercrime rate is also accelerating massively because of advancements in technology. Malware practitioners and hackers are now much more equipped than before. Not only global companies are targeted by them. As small businesses can be easy victims for them because their offices, devices and network are vulnerable.
This can be pretty stressful because small businesses are usually owned by people who’re on a tight budget. Fortunately if you’re feeling that your small business is at risk, don’t worry.
In this short guide, we have gathered five best tips that every small business owner must take advantage of to protect their business from cybercrime.
Using a firewall
The first thing you have to do to protect your business from cybercrime is to build a security fortress around it. This fortress is a firewall. You must already be using a firewall to protect and secure your operating system. However we recommend you to go for a more advanced version of it to protect your office devices too.
Another option is to install a firewall on all your office devices to ensure that your data won’t get compromised. Since still a lot of companies are practicing work from home, therefore it’s necessary to install firewall on office networks to prevent cyberattack.
Instruct your employees to install advanced firewall on all the devices that they’re using to work. Using advanced firewall security will keep your small business safe from cybercrime.
Installing malware scanning software
Malware scanning software is primary but they are often overlooked by small business owners. However, it’s essential to install malware scanning software on every office device to prevent them from getting contaminated by malwares.
The benefit of using automated malware software is that it routinely scans all devices for malwares to protect them from cyber attack.
If you haven’t installed one yet, don’t worry. There are plenty of malware scanning software available on the internet. You’ll find free and paid malware scanning software.
Secure all your mobile devices
Being a small business owner a lot of responsibility lies on your shoulder. You probably use mobile phones or laptops to close business deals. But if you’re using a mobile phone, you need to secure it and protect it against security threats, especially when you are using a mobile phone outside your office.
Therefore, we recommend you to access all your business material by using a VPN (Virtual Private Network). Avoid connecting your mobile device to open Wi-Fi networks when you’re in public places. Don’t use the internet network outside your office.
This will ensure that your business data won’t get mixed with your or your employees personal data. Don’t connect your business account with personal accounts because personal accounts are more vulnerable and can be hacked easily.
Backup and update regularly
Well this is the most significant part and even we don’t have to say because it’s pretty obvious to update your operating system and update it regularly to avoid any catastrophic consequences.
Update your malware scanning software regularly until things get out of your friends. Keep backup of all your confidential and important data after every 24 hours. When you acquire new and critical data, make sure to make it a backup of it.
Also it’s a really good idea to save all your critical data on external devices or hard drives to keep a backup of it.
Document all your policies
After building a proper protection plan for your small business – it’s time to document each and everything. Formulate a business policy and send it to all your employees. Conduct a proper meeting with your employees and ask if they have any queries or concerns.
Also update your policy whenever it requires. Make sure it’s up-to-date.
Conclusion
Running small businesses is pretty daunting. Use these cybersecurity tips to secure your small business from cyberattack. When there are hundreds of thousands of malware practitioners and hackers out there, it’s necessary to tighten your security.
Thank you so much for the information. It gave me some more insights into the area and provided me with a fresh perspective. As you said cyber-security is a big issue these days because hackers steal our important data and personal data that can lead to extortions.
So, I launched some devices that can protect our computers like SSD, PC series (X-phy). It is the best option for secure our systems. We also provide cyber training for our team members.
Great tips. There are also extra protection that cybersecurity provider have for businesses. It is important to have those too.