Security is an important part of running a business and as a business owner, you should be paying close attention to how vulnerable your business may be to the outside world.
That’s not just security mistakes made in-person but online too. With modern businesses, the existence of the Internet is like a double-edged sword. Although it presents many opportunities that could help businesses reach unexpected successes, there are also a lot more risks present online that businesses both old and new could fall victim to.
With that being said, here are several common security mistakes every business owner should look to avoid this year and beyond.
- Poor password practices
Passwords are the security between open accounts and protected ones. Would you leave your front door open for anyone to just walk in as and when they want? No? Well, that should be something you think about every time you or an employee enters the same password that was used for another account.
By doing this, it damages to security of not just that one account but all other accounts that may also have that password. Picking easy-to-remember passwords or passwords associated with the person in some way can also make for an easier opportunity for cybercriminals to take advantage of.
Think about what password practices you should be encouraging to your staff and try to embrace all of these practices where you can instead of trying to keep things simple for yourself.
- No multi-factor authentication in place
Multi-factor authentication is double-locking your accounts so that you can prevent cyber criminals from accessing your account information, even with a password to hand.
With multi-factor authentication, you’ll be able to add that extra layer of security and hopefully avoid any opportunities that cybercriminals will have when they gain access to a password or two.
By not having that multi-factor authentication in place, it could be the difference between saving your business from a massive data breach and allowing it to happen which could cause reputational damage.
- Neglecting antivirus software and updates
Antivirus software is imperative when it comes to protecting your business devices. When you have multiple employees using many devices across their working day, whether that’s mobile or desktop, antivirus software helps to protect all of them.
You should have antivirus software in place that can help protect all of your business devices and the employees using them. It’s also helpful that you continue to update your antivirus software too. Be mindful of updating this antivirus software every so often because you might find that some software ends up being outdated or not enough for your growing business.
- Lack of security on-site
Security on-site is important, just as important to put in place as security practices online too. Some businesses may be able to afford 24/7 security guards whereas other businesses may have limited funds.
If your business can’t afford on-site security guards, then it might be worth ensuring you have some form of physical access control in place. This adds a physical barrier between the outside world and the employees and guests in your building.
Along with CCTV and reception staff on entry, this can provide enough of a security point if guards aren’t available just yet within your budget.
- Not backing up data
Backing up your data is useful to do because data is a highly sought-after asset. Not just for businesses near and far but also for those who wish to use the data to exploit others.
Cybercriminals will certainly be keen to access this data for the purpose of destroying it, holding it ransom, or using it to bring down a business.
By not backing up data, you’re doing a disservice to yourself and your customers or clients. It’s imperative that not only is your data backed up but you’ve got multiple copies should one be compromised or go missing.
Ideally, you should have the originals on your server, backups on a hard drive that’s physically detachable from your equipment, and then another backup that’s kept off-site somewhere.
- Lack of incident response plans
A lot of the time, the reaction times from a business when they’re under attack from cybercrime is what can cause the problems in the first place. An incident response plan is helpful for all your staff members to know of and take in so that if anything like a cyber attack were to happen on their watch or to themselves, then they’ll know exactly what to do.
A lack of an incident response plan will ultimately cause a bigger fallout and possibly irreversible damage that your business might not be able to recover from. With that being said, it’s important to focus on creating an incident response plan and have numerous individuals within the plan who can be relied on, should the first responder not be available or away from the office.
The more people who are looped into the incident response plan, the better it’ll be for all staff members. Try to prioritize heads of staff, managers, or supervisors as part of the team that is responsible for incident response to cybercrime.
- Neglecting employee training
Neglecting your employees’ training is something that can really impact the quality of work that they do, as well as the security of your business. Cybersecurity is training that is crucial for many businesses and it’s definitely something you should provide to every single employee.
Consider what employee training you can provide for cybersecurity so that every employee has the experience and knowledge required to avoid getting caught out by a cyber attack. There are plenty of courses and training documents online so look at what’s available and what areas of cybersecurity are required by the individuals in your business.
There are certainly some common security mistakes that can happen to every business owner. Make sure to avoid these problems by providing employees with training, backing up the data, using strong passwords, and adding an extra layer of security with multi-factor authentication.
