We all enjoy the benefits technology can bring to our business and our
dependency is growing with the spread of social networking and personal banking. But can we truly say that we are fully aware of the risks of this new dependency? Ask yourself would you walk away from your house or car and leave the door open? If not then why would you leave your systems wide open for someone to enter?
As more owners put their business information on-line there is an ever increasing threat from hackers to access our company websites and systems infrastructure. Most SME’s attitude is” why would hackers consider my small business when there are more lucrative larger organisations out there to target”. Well the reality is that the larger organisations have the resources and expertise to safeguard their systems and minimise their risk. SME’s are therefore the low hanging fruit, ripe for picking.
In a recent survey of 583 U.S. companies conducted by Ponemon Research, 90{f9759586bde9aae26041f7c5d30a2f7e6dd9dbb8958c8825ec70079a0c78198b} of the respondents said their organisations’ computers had been breached at least once by hackers over the past 12 months. In the UK, statistics are not as readily available. UK companies have concerns over releasing data on cyber-attacks, fearing that such information would damage their credibility if it were made public.
At the very least businesses should attend to the following:
Password
Particular care should be taken when establishing passwords for your computer. Passwords should be:
- at least seven characters long
- a combination of letters, numbers and symbols
- dissimilar to any word found in a dictionary
- memorised if possible or locked away or stored in a safe area
Antivirus and Firewalls
As a minimum security requirement you should run both an antivirus and a firewall on your computer. They provide different but very necessary functions. Antivirus software detects and removes malware, such as spyware and viruses, and a firewall prevents malware and other attacks from even reaching your computer in the first place. Working together they provide you with the best possible protection.
Websites
Implement procedures to backup core data on your website. Time and energy is spent creating the perfect picture, with owners taking days pondering over the detail in the development of their websites. The last thing they need is for tragedy to strike with data disappearing in an instant.
Cyber-attacks are not the only concern. Robust backup procedures are vital and should be top of your list. There is also a need to safeguard data and you should be checking your requirement for Data Protection registration.
Carry out a risk assessment now and apply safeguards as appropriate for your business.
If you have any issues give us a call and we can signpost you to assistance
