Effective Ways To Protect Your Business from Cyber Attack

Cyber attacks are, unfortunately, a fact of life.

They occur or at least are attempted everyday. These cyber attacks can be crippling or even deadly for businesses. 60% of businesses that experience a cyber attack close within 6 months. Not all businesses take cyber security seriously enough. Thankfully, there are some simple steps you can take to protect your business from cyber attacks. By following the suggestions in this guide you can avoid being attacked online.

Security Assessments

It is impossible to improve your cyber security if you don’t know what its current state is. Before you take on the task of beefing up your security, run an assessment. Find out where you are doing well and where you can improve. This will save you from improving areas that are doing fine and give you a clear direction to go in.

Staff Training

Software can only protect your company so much; your employees are another major factor in security. You're only as protected as your least informed employee. Having employees that are poorly trained in the ways of security is an opportunity for criminals to work their way into your company.
Make sure your employees know how to spot attempts from hackers, whether they come in the form of phishing emails or suspicious phone calls. Set aside time to train all employees on how to identify and avoid criminal attempts to breach security. Encourage your employees to be vigilant and aware of security practices; make them an extension of the security team.

Keep Software Updated

Any and all software that your company uses should be kept up to date. Software providers are constantly checking their programs for bugs or vulnerabilities and regularly patch and update their programs; do not ignore these updates. Companies will only issue an update to make the program better; this includes bug fixes, new features, and closing security loopholes. The newest version of software are generally considered the best available version, so keep everything updated. Not all programs will tell you there’s a new update, as many will auto update. Check at least once a month to see if your software needs to be updated.

Constant Monitoring

Attacks can happen anytime and can come from anywhere, so it is important to remain vigilant. Thankfully, there is software to help with the monitoring. Security Event and Incident Monitoring (SEIM) software can alert you to suspicious user activity or data surprises that may indicate an attack is approaching. Security Operations Center services can provide additional support in the form of security analysts trained in interpreting the alerts.

Incident Response Plan

No matter how well you plan and secure your company, a breach still might happen. When an attack does happen, you need to have a plan. A good plan is decisive and clear on what needs to be done when a breach does occur. The plan should also lay out what everyone’s role is to fix the situation. You want to know who needs to do what with no confusion.
A good first step is to unplug from the network once it has been breached. You want to limit what the hackers can access, so unplugging from your company network ASAP is vital.

Physical Security

Even if you have the best software security system, physical security is just as important. It is not uncommon for criminals to gather login credentials, trade secrets, and other valuable information through physical location breaches. Keep track of who is supposed to be in your office and who is supposed to have access to what. Cameras, keys, and badges are simple ways to add employee and business safety. Keep important calls in a closed meeting room to avoid trade secrets being overheard. Be careful with allowing company hardware, such as laptops, out of the office, as they will be less secure.
Cyber attacks will always be around, so the best you can do is to be prepared. Take security seriously so your company doesn’t become one of those devastated by hackers. By following the suggestions in this guide you will be on your way to making your data safe and secure.