What You Should Know About Cybersecurity As a Small Business Owner

With increasingly common news reports of cyberattacks, hacking attempts, and security breaches hitting the headlines on a scarily frequent basis, cybersecurity is something that every business needs to take seriously. Although attacks on larger, well-known businesses tend to make the news more often, the truth is that smaller businesses tend to be bigger targets for hackers who find it easier to access systems that are not always well-protected. A lack of security budget plus a mistaken belief that only larger companies are hacked means that small businesses often face the biggest risk. As a small business owner, here’s what you should know about cybersecurity.

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It’s Always Worth Outsourcing IT:

Antivirus isn’t enough when it comes to protecting your small business from hackers and sophisticated cybercriminals. This is especially true if you are currently dealing with employees who are working remotely as a result of the COVID19 crisis and might be using home Wi-Fi networks, which are often much easier for criminals to infiltrate to access secure work systems and data. The best way to ensure that your business is offered the best protection is to outsource your IT to a managed services provider with a strong focus on cybersecurity.

Limit Your Stored Data:

Today, businesses of every size are collecting data all the time, from social media to online orders. Even if you run a small local business, you might be surprised at the sheer volume of data that you collect on your customers. Data is one of the most valuable assets that your business can own, whether you collect a small amount or tons of it on a daily basis. The more data that you hold on your customers, the more of a target your business will become. Because of this, it’s important to limit the data that you store as much as possible and only collect what is absolutely necessary.

Protect Your Data:

Taking steps to keep your data limited as much as possible is not enough; it’s important to have strong policies in place to make sure that the data that you do keep is as well-protected as possible. Being careless with data not only increases your risk of a breach but could also put your business in legal trouble. Password policies for employees, along with limiting the number of employees that have access to sensitive customer data, are paramount.

Ongoing Education and a Cybersecurity Culture:

Finally, one of the best defenses against cyberattacks on your small business is to provide ongoing employee education that contributes to a strong cybersecurity culture in the workplace. Employees who understand what they are looking for and are kept up to date on the latest trends in cyberattacks and hacking attempts are more likely to spot the signs of a breach before it is allowed to happen. It is important to create a culture of communication between employees and a sense of responsibility held by everybody when it comes to keeping the business safe.

Although attacks on big businesses might make the news more often, your small business is far from safe.