5 Simple Ways To Keep Your Company’s Digital Data Secure
Cyberattacks are on the rise, and no matter how secure you think your corporate network is, you could still be vulnerable for attack. In fact, 68% of small businesses don’t have a disaster recovery plan. If this sounds like you, here are some things you can do right now to ensure you don’t become a victim.
Backup Your Data
This may sound silly, but simply backing your data up to the cloud or a physical backup server could save you from stressful, taxing data recovery if a breach ever occurs. If your data gets hacked or compromised, restoring it is as simple as pulling it from your backup server and going on with your workday as long as you have made the effort to secure it. If not, you could be looking at costly and time-intensive recovery, which could be devastating to your company.
Ensure Employees are Using the Internet Securely
If you do not have an employee Internet policy in place, now is the time to enact one. This is particularly important if your employees have the ability to browse the Internet on company computers or laptops (for remote workers) that are connected to the corporate network. It is frighteningly simple for an employee to inadvertently click on an infected link or open a dangerous email attachment that could bring down your entire network. If you don’t want to have a strict policy about which sites employees can browse on work computers, at least ensure that you educate them on the dangers of unsafe browsing. Also, ensure that all browsing sessions use strong encryption like SSL or TLS. If you are wondering what is TLS, it is a super secure protocol which provides the utmost amount of security and privacy for Internet browsing, email, and more.
Install Anti-Malware Protection
Your company’s computers likely came with a free trial of some type of security or anti-malware software. Did you use the trial until it expired and then leave your computer unprotected? Many people are guilty of forgetting to secure their computers, and many also feel like malware protection software isn’t essential because they don’t surf sketchy sites anyway. Yet, malware can be anywhere and can sneak past even the most tech-savvy person at any time. If you don’t currently have this type of software installed on every computer connected to your corporate network, it is essential that you get it installed ASAP.
Install Software Updates
Software updates can be a major pain. They always want to run at the least convenient time and can take your computer offline for hours. Yet, it is important not to ignore these updates because they can contain much more than new features that you don’t care about. Many updates actually contain bug fixes and security patches that should not be missed. Consider encouraging employees to (or have your tech team) set up automatic software updates that run at night, or when computers aren’t in use and at risk of halting productivity. Circumventing updates may seem innocent, but it’s important to let them run so you don’t put your entire company at unnecessary risk.
Turn Computers Off
Turn computers off when not in use, especially overnight. A computer left unoccupied overnight is the perfect target for hackers because they know that no one is there to stop them. A good rule of thumb is that if you will not be near your computer for a lengthy amount of time (this doesn’t mean a quick lunch break), turn it off so that no one aside from you has access. This is also a good idea if you work in an environment with other people who could see things that they shouldn’t on your monitor — innocently or not.
Keeping your digital data safe from a devastating cyberattack is easier than you think. Use these simple tips and you’ll be well-armed against any attacker that tries to breach your network.
