Whether Target’s loss of payment card information or Equifax’s exposure of 143 million people’s data, a business can quickly find itself on the losing end of a costly cyber-attack. The good news is that preparation, technology, and adherence to privacy laws can mitigate the damage caused by these incidents.
Implement Strong Access Controls
Any business that uses the internet has to implement strong access controls. These controls identify the areas of your network that are most vulnerable and limit unauthorized access to them. Passwords are often used to bypass access control measures, so you must require strong passwords and change them frequently. It’s also essential to ensure employees use separate accounts for security purposes and take additional I&A precautions (such as generating stronger passwords or using passphrases). Privileged users present a higher risk of data breaches because they have access to more sensitive information, systems, and applications. This is why it’s crucial to manage their access rights effectively. It’s also essential to have a process for terminating access for employees who quit, get fired, or are laid off. This will minimize the chances of a breach due to the theft or misuse of your company’s data. This will also help you abide by laws like GDPR and HIPAA. It’s also a good idea to conduct regular audits to determine who has accessed your data and what they have been doing with it.
Install Security Software
Making security software updates part of your business’s cybersecurity strategy is essential. This can assist in limiting illegal users’ access to your vital data and systems. It’s also necessary to ensure that devices like laptops and mobile phones have hard-to-guess passwords or anti-theft apps. It would help if you also considered using software that permanently wipes data from these devices when lost or stolen (not reformatting the device, which is often insufficient). You can use network monitoring solutions to identify suspicious activity and potential vulnerabilities. This can include an SIEM platform, which collects data from your network and devices and correlates it to detect threats that may go undetected by other security technologies. You should also educate employees on spotting common cyberattacks and encourage them to protect their personal information proactively. This can include enforcing BYOD security policies, requiring password managers and VPNs on work devices, and teaching employees how to avoid socially engineered attacks. You can even have training sessions or conferences to educate employees. Also, robust data breach response for businesses involves swift and strategic actions, such as implementing advanced identity governance, which allows organizations to define, manage, and audit user access rights effectively. It also emphasizes automated user provisioning and de-provisioning processes, reducing the likelihood of human error and ensuring access permissions align with organizational policies.
Install Antivirus Software
While technology empowers businesses to thrive, it also opens up new pathways for cybercriminals to access proprietary data and personal information. Using antivirus software is one of the most basic yet effective preventative measures that you can take to protect your business from data breaches. Hackers use malicious software (commonly called malware) to infiltrate computers and laptops, steal sensitive data, and use it for identity theft. Hackers may spread this software by sending you a dubious email attachment or exploiting a website security flaw. Antivirus programs detect and remove this malicious code from your computer system, giving you and your customers peace of mind. When selecting an antivirus program, read user reviews and use the software’s free trial to test its performance on your machine. Ideally, it would help to regularly run updates for your operating systems, browsers, and essential apps to eliminate any software flaws that hackers could exploit. In addition, you should consider upgrading your hardware if it’s outdated. This will help to protect your devices and networks from the latest threats.
Encrypt All Data
Data breaches are a costly nightmare for small businesses. In fact, according to IBM, the average cost per breach has climbed to $4.35 million, which includes the loss of customer trust, possible class action lawsuits, and fines from regulators. Fortunately, preventing data breaches is relatively easy. It is critical to implement cybersecurity best practices, including teaching employees to follow simple cybersecurity hygiene habits. This is a step that many business owners skip, but it can be a robust line of defense against cyberattacks.
Additionally, encrypting all internal data is essential. This prevents hackers from learning user behaviors, arming lateral movement, and privilege compromise efforts that lead to a data breach. It is also important to regularly backup the data on your computer systems, particularly those that contain sensitive information. This can include word processing documents, electronic spreadsheets, accounting files, and human resources files. It is essential to backup these files regularly, automatically or manually, and to store the copies offsite or in the cloud. This reduces the risk of a ransomware attack, in which criminals block access to your data and demand payment to restore it.
Install a Firewall
The first line of defense against data breaches is a firewall, which acts as a barrier between a private network and the outside world. Firewalls monitor all the data entering a system and check for malicious content or recognizable threats. Depending on the type of security you need, there are several different types of firewalls, both hardware and software-based. Without a firewall, devices, and IT systems can be attacked by hackers through direct attacks and viruses. They can also be affected by malware, phishing, macros, and other cyberattacks to access personal information or disrupt business operations. A firewall can prevent most of these attacks by monitoring incoming and outgoing data packets and blocking those that don’t meet a specific policy. However, firewalls can only be as effective as configured and managed, so it’s essential to have one correctly set up and maintained by experts.
