You have probably started January with some plans in mind for your business in 2023. If you haven’t recently reviewed your IT security, then that should be on your list!
Cyber security threats are continually evolving. Cyber criminals are constantly seeking new ways to infiltrate the IT systems of businesses and individuals across the globe – the aim being to steal data or money.
It is estimated that in 2022 around 40% of UK businesses suffered a cyber attack or attempted attack. This applied to businesses of all sizes – small, owner-managed businesses are just as at risk as large corporate organisations.
The good news is that as criminals’ attack methods evolve, so do the measures that you can put in place to protect your business. Reviewing your IT security therefore needs to be an ongoing process – not a one-off exercise – and something that your IT provider supports you with.
Areas to consider will include:
- Having an up to date and effective anti-virus solution in place on all your devices.
- Software security patches.
- Having a good firewall in place.
- Having a policy relating to password complexity.
- Backups – for servers or for your Cloud environment, emails etc.
- Regular reviews of who has access to your system. Make sure that all ex-employees have been removed.
- Encryption of device hard drives.
- Software that scans incoming email for anything harmful in attachments and links – before you can open them. An example is Microsoft 365 Defender.
- Remote management of any mobile devices that have access to company data.
- Having a customised log-in screen for your business, to prevent your users being caught out by spoof pages that try to trick them into entering their log-in credentials.
- Attaining the government-approved Cyber Essentials standard.
- Cyber security training for your people. We can’t stress enough how important the “human factor” is, when it comes to protecting your business. Research has shown that regular short training sessions are the most effective, and there are a number of affordable on-line solutions available.
To discuss any of the above in more detail please give us a call or enter your contact details here.