04-05-23 | Blog Post
Over the years, more companies have embraced the e-commerce business model for various reasons. Recent data shows that 20-30% of businesses moved their operations online during the Covid-19 peak. Unfortunately, this rapid shift to online working has also been a blessing in disguise to snoops and hackers.
Statistics show that corporate networks suffered 50% more cyber attacks in 2021 compared to 2020. When such attacks occur, the damage is massive, as cybercriminals can infiltrate up to 93% of company networks. Cloud security companies admit that security threats, especially ransomware attacks, remains one of the top challenges facing IT departments in 2023.
Securing data management infrastructure remains a priority in protecting your businesses against data breaches in the modern digitalized economy. Here are vital considerations for protecting your business against cyber threats.
Conduct an in-depth review of the organization’s security measures before deploying any new security measures. Schedule weekly or monthly internal audits to assess the effectiveness of your company’s security measures against vulnerabilities or any other emerging threats.
External audits can be done quarterly or annually since they are more in-depth and may disrupt work patterns.
Access controls verify users through their login credentials, such as usernames and passwords. This helps businesses to protect sensitive data from theft or manipulation by unauthorized parties.
Multi-factor authentication is one of the best methods to administer strong access control. It’s a secure technology that uses multiple user identity verification methods to access the system.
Here are other tips you can use to manage access control to your systems:
Always consult your cybersecurity team on the best access management solutions and other role-based access controls, that may vary depending on your networks.
Endpoints like laptops, desktop PC machines, and mobile devices are among the weakest links in many organizations’ security chains. They are easy points of entry for hackers looking to steal your digital assets. Hackers can attack your network-connected devices using little resources without raising any suspicion.
Thus, businesses should include endpoint security as a key component in their cyber security strategies. These may include using automated endpoint protection or up-to-date firewalls and antivirus solutions.
Encryption is one of the safest ways to protect your data from hackers. The process involves converting data into codes to bar unauthorized access. Depending on your business needs, you can encrypt the entire hard drive or individual files.
Aim to encrypt all the sensitive data in transit or at rest. For instance, you can secure your transit data by updating all your web communications to secure HTTPS protocols.
Encrypting File System (EFS) for Windows is a basic security product businesses can implement. The tool uses a symmetric encryption algorithm that only allows authorized users to view files but denies access and shows errors for unauthorized parties. This happens even if the intruders have complete control over your machines.
You can also secure your emails and messages with Pretty Good Privacy (PGP)—an encrypting program offering cryptographic privacy and authentication for internet data communication.
Many security breaches can easily be avoided by performing simple tasks on the screen. Train your workers on defense mechanisms against common threats. These may include best practices on password management, safe internet use, and phishing awareness.
Offer data security awareness training from the first day of onboarding. Train them on defense against common data security threats like malware, social engineering scams, and phishing emails. Do this for remote and mobile employees alike.
Strong network security solutions are the basics for protecting business data from intruders. These include;
These tools protect your system from worms and viruses, ensuring your network is secure and trustworthy.
Incidents will still occur even with the strongest security measures in place. Your incident response plan will determine how best you mitigate the situation.
Statistics show that up to 83% of small and medium-sized businesses lack the financial capability to recover from a cyber attack. As a result, businesses need a feasible plan for detecting, containing, and recovering from cyber attacks in case they occur.
Keeping your business data safe from intruders is not a one-time event. Hackers are constantly devising new techniques to steal data. Many such attacks occur during cloud migration. According to an IBM study, 45% of cyber-attacks are cloud-related.
Without proper measures to manage such threats, cyber-attacks may lead to the permanent closure of a business. OTAVA is one of the most trusted industry experts you can rely on for all aspects of cybersecurity, including network and workload security, audits, staff training, and user security. Contact us today to get started.
