What are the best practices to improve cybersecurity? Many SMEs have fast-tracked their digital transformation as a priority with the pandemic, but with limited experience in adopting new technology and its security features, and lack the budget to implement the best practices to improve cybersecurity, also their ability to hire skilled/experienced manpower, has made them vulnerable to an increased threat of cyberattacks especially phishing, ransomware, and social media threats.
SMEs are easier pickings for hackers due to their lack of cybersecurity, cyberattacks have the potential to paralyse any business operations. Researches shows that 90% of companies goes out of business within one year after a severe security breach, because they have limited resources to respond and recover from cyberattacks.
Cyberattacks may come in several forms, but the most common types of attacks that can leak business information are malware and phishing.
- As per Wikipedia explanation, Malware is any software intentionally designed to cause disruption to a computer, server, client, or computer network, leak private information, gain unauthorized access to information or systems, deprive access to information, or which unknowingly interferes with the user’s computer security and privacy. Researchers tend to classify malware into one or more subtypes (i.e. computer viruses, worms, Trojan horses, ransomware, spyware, adware, rogue software, wiper and keyloggers).
- As per Wikipedia explanation, Phishing is a form of social engineering where attackers deceive people into revealing sensitive information or installing malware such as ransomware. Phishing attacks have become increasingly sophisticated and often transparently mirror the site being targeted, allowing the attacker to observe everything while the victim is navigating the site, and transverse any additional security boundaries with the victim.
It is expected that cyber threats are going to grow in number in the coming years as more businesses transform to digital to cope with market trend. With the threats getting more sophisticated and intense, it is important for SMEs to implement security solutions which are effective and suites their budget and their level of knowledge to detect and respond to these attacks.
SMEs need to understand how to implement cybersecurity measures as a priority for their business. The key to good cybersecurity is to understand that cyberattacks are constantly evolving, which requires businesses to be ready to response at any time.
Here are 7 best practices to improve cybersecurity
- Conduct regular awareness training sessions to ensure employees can identify and avoid dangerous online behaviour and threats.
- Implementing security policies that limit users ability to install unlicensed software on work computers.
- Use multifactor authentication to protect critical business data.
- Use multiple monitoring, antivirus and anti-malware tools to protect the networks.
- Periodically perform software security upgrades to ensure that the latest security patches are rolled out across the entire company.
- Backup and recovery system for company critical applications should be placed to reduce the risk of cyberattacks.
- Move to using cloud fully managed services, for their critical applications.
In iX Dev we care about customer data security as number one priority, to operate and secure their critical business application as a fully managed services. Our customers are rest assured that their critical information are in good hands while they take care of their business without buying expensive security solutions or employ expensive cybersecurity professionals.