Data breaches are an unfortunate reality that businesses have to contend with, but small businesses often do not give them the consideration that they deserve. It is critical that you consider security challenges and take these risks seriously. Let’s examine how you can overcome some of the many challenges that small businesses have with cybersecurity.
Phishing
Phishing is a huge problem for small businesses, as it makes up a significant portion of situations that they encounter. Phishing is considered more of a scam rather than a hacking attack, but that should not diminish its threat level. Phishing attacks can target any mode of communication your organization uses, including social media, email, or phone calls. All it takes is one mistake on a single employee’s part to create problems for your business.
Here is an example of how phishing works. Let’s say one of your staff accidentally clicks on an attachment in an email without checking where it came from or if it’s trusted. They might think they are doing their job and checking the attachment, but if the email installs malware on your network, it means trouble for your entire business. Phishing can install more than just malware; it can install trojans, viruses, or even the dreaded ransomware.
Hackers are always trying to one-up security solutions and professionals, so phishing can be difficult to counter if the messages manage to get past sophisticated security solutions. This is why you should always train your employees on how to spot potential phishing attempts.
Poor Passwords
Poor password policies are one of the biggest issues that lead to security breaches. Like with phishing attacks, hackers have designed sophisticated measures to guess or predict passwords within a shockingly short timeframe. Social engineering tactics can also be used to steal simple or duplicated passwords.
Never discount the importance of password security! If your employees are using poor passwords or duplicate passwords, you can consider every account using such a password to be an open window to your IT infrastructure. Implementing password best practices can make this weakness much less pronounced. Remember that passwords should be complex and changed regularly to keep them from being stolen, compromised, or guessed.
Holes in Software
All software solutions are periodically updated to resolve security and performance issues, but it is ultimately your responsibility to make sure that these patches get administered to your solutions. The last thing you want to do is let your negligence in applying these critical patches create more opportunities for hackers to infiltrate your network.
One of the best ways to address these vulnerabilities is to let someone else handle deploying them in the first place so that you don’t get too caught up in the day-to-day routine to make the necessary updates. You should be regularly patching your software and applying updates as they come out. Failing to do so puts you at risk needlessly, so why not let us do the heavy lifting for you?
Macatawa Technologies can help your business put in the work necessary to keep network security at the top of its priority list. To learn more, reach out to us at (616) 394-4940.
