Whether you’re running a small or a big business, cybersecurity is said to be very crucial. With today’s growing threats to all types and sizes of companies, from phishing to insider threats, it only makes sense to have a strong cybersecurity solution.
So, if you think it’s enough to install an antivirus program or strengthen your firewall, know that cybersecurity threats don’t only come from the outside of your company. One of the worst security risks that many businesses may face is insider threats.
Basically, an insider threat comes from someone with access to your company’s assets and information. This someone may include anyone connected or working in your company such as business associates, contractors, former and current employees, and vendors.
To learn more about insider threats, visit the Netwrix blog and keep the following practices in mind to counter other cybersecurity risks within your business:
1. Implement The Zero Trust Model
One way to counter cybersecurity risks within your business is to change the way you think about cybersecurity issues and implement the zero trust model. Most people believe their defenses are strong that they may overlook small problems and focus on major holes that might be easy targets for the attackers.
However, at present, it’s one of the outdated cybersecurity practices you should end if you don’t want to face serious consequences over time. The best solution is to use the zero trust model in your company’s cybersecurity strategy.
Instead of assuming that everything is safe, the zero trust model will assume that breaches may happen and verify all requests as if they came from unsafe networks. Under this strategy, you can authorize and authenticate all access requests. With that in mind, it’ll be much easier to respond and detect odd attacks or behavior, blocking them before granting access.
2. Educate Your Employees And Implement Policies
Did you know that the employees that work within your business are said to be one of the biggest cybersecurity risks? Regardless of how big or small, your business is, you can be a victim of an insider attack. The bad thing about insider attacks is that they can be difficult to stop since they know their way around your systems and may bypass your outer defenses using their access credentials.
Insiders may attack your system unintentionally in various ways, and one of these is to compromise their user account credentials. It can be done by sending a company email to an unauthorized individual and connecting to a virus-infected device. Phishing campaigns are also prevalent nowadays.
Fortunately, most of those situations can be prevented by educating your employees regarding cybersecurity. Employees who are aware of phishing campaigns and knowledgeable about the security information that shouldn’t be requested in emails are believed to be less likely to provide credentials to attackers.
Below are other measures you can consider to lessen the risk from insider threats:
Provide Cybersecurity Risk Training
Everybody may pitch in to promote online safety and training may help minimize the threats from possible phishing attacks and scams. Regular training can make a difference to prevent your employees from online scams.
Have A Policy Of Least Privilege
Limit your employees’ access to the resources they only need. Never allow people to access your sensitive data from their personal device or off-network. If possible, provide appropriate access to allow remote access whenever it’s necessary. You should also combine it with strong authentication in place to access the critical data.
Create A Policy For Unsecured Devices
Having a mobile workforce is essential during this pandemic, but you should never take security for granted. Keep in mind that there are countless ways attackers can breach an unsecured device.
So, have a strong device policy to ensure security. Depending on your company’s cybersecurity goals, your device policy should include updating antivirus software, application installation control, proper updates of patches, and so on.
3. Be Wise About Your Passwords
Your business should have password policies to address the strength and reuse of user passwords. If possible, change the passwords of your computers from time to time and use strong passwords instead of the common ones like 123456.
If you stick with easy-to-remember passwords, you may end up getting more cybersecurity attacks-all of which may create external and internal havoc. So, be smart with your passwords and use a combination of numbers, alphabets, and symbols.
4. Always Use The Latest Security Patches
Attackers don’t stop looking for vulnerabilities and flaws in your system. For highly skilled hackers, it only takes a small gap to infiltrate your database. This is the reason why you should have regular scans of your security infrastructure to look for possible entryways before cyber attackers are able to take advantage of them.
Aside from that, it’s crucial to keep your software updated with the latest patches. For instance, if your computer needs to update, do it immediately so that you won’t forget about it later.
5. Lessen Your Data Transfers
Transferring data from a business device to another device is inevitable, especially if most of your employees work remotely. While it may seem secure, keeping your work data on personal or external devices may expose your data to possible attackers.
Therefore, make sure to lessen data transfer as much as possible. Also, consult or partner with a cybersecurity service provider to help you determine endpoints or devices exposed and ways to secure them better.
6. Determine Your Sensitive Data And Implement Encryption
Data encryption is the first step in your cybersecurity strategy to counter potential risks within your business. To start, determine your sensitive or confidential data that may put your business at risk. Besides the obvious data you should keep safe, including personal and credit card information, you should also secure your customer data and confidential information regarding your new products and services.
When it comes to data encryption, you have several options to choose from. You can either install an encryption tool or hire service providers that offer the latest encryption solutions suited for your business.
Conclusion
Preventing cybersecurity risks within your business is never easy. But, once you apply the above practices properly, you can be assured that your business and its sensitive data are guarded and well-protected. If you’re confused about where to get started pouring investments in your venture, never hesitate to ask for help from the professionals and get the best possible solution suited for your company’s cybersecurity needs.
