How should your team approach cybersecurity solutions for small businesses? Cybersecurity is essential for all companies, whether you’re a small business or a large corporation. However, small businesses are used to doing a lot more work with fewer employees. The same can absolutely be said when it comes to cybersecurity for small businesses. As a small business owner, you’re left wearing many hats, including the cybersecurity expert. It can be overwhelming trying to figure out how to keep your business and employees safe from cybersecurity threats. Integris wants to help with cybersecurity advice for small businesses.
As experts in cybersecurity solutions for small businesses, g we’ve created a comprehensive guide for success. In this blog, we’ll go through each security tip and explain how to perform every action. It’s important to note that without an IT professional on- staff, these steps won’t be fulfilled optimally. With the help of managed cybersecurity services, you can ensure your business is fully protected, with experts available to make fixes and answer any and all questions.
Cybersecurity Checklist for Small Business
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- Best Practices Training
- Secure Network Connections
- Strong Passwords
- 2-Factor Authentication
- Firewall Protection
- Safe Data Backups
- Updated Technology Cyber Incident Response Plan
- Expertise on Cybersecurity Solutions for Small Business
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Best Practices Training
Following our cybersecurity advice for small businesses is meaningless unless all employees do it together. That’s why this tip is number one on our cybersecurity checklist for small businesses. To keep your business safe from cyberattacks, you need to train your employees. The best way to do so is to bring in an expert in small business cybersecurity solutions to go over day-to-day steps they must take to remain protected and understand what cybersecurity threats look like.
Secure Network Connections
Whether your company is fully remote or entirely in the office, make sure all your technology is connected to secure, private accounts. If a computer is connected to public internet access, that means anyone else who is also connected to that Wi-Fi can gain access to your data. Keep yourself as safe as possible by keeping that connection secure. Services like managed network security take care of your network holistically.
Strong Passwords
Do you use the same password over and over again for everything? Time to break that habit immediately. Creating unique passwords for all online services makes accessing your data much more difficult for cyber attackers. If you’re using a simple password that barely passes the requirements for each online portal, that means a hacker will have an easier time figuring out your password. We recommend using a password generator that creates complex passwords filled with random numbers and letters. That way, you don’t have to do the heavy lifting to come up with something challenging for a password.
2-Factor Authentication
Speaking of secure passwords, another piece of cybersecurity advice for small businesses is to set up 2FA for everything you possibly can. 2FA is two-factor authentication and essentially creates a whole additional step that hackers have to go through before they can access your account. Usually, this works by providing a backup access point, such as your cellphone number or another email that the website can contact you through to ensure it’s you accessing your account. So, when someone unauthorized signs in, you’ll receive a ping on your phone, and you can deny them access.
Firewall Protection
Want something to protect you and your company from data breaches 24/7? Then firewall management services are the perfect solution for you. A firewall is a programmed network security system that can stop unauthorized data breaches in their tracks. Essentially, they create a barrier between your trusted network and something trying to access your data on an untrusted network. However, firewalls can be tricky and expensive to set up on your own, especially if you don’t have the training to do so. This step is another reason why hiring a professional can ensure you have a firewall set up correctly. Otherwise, it won’t do much protecting.
Safe Data Backups
Sometimes accidents happen, and you lose files. That’s why it’s important to always back them up to multiple locations, so you don’t have to scramble to recreate anything important. Not only should you ensure that your data is backed up to avoid hackers, but you should also make sure you’re backing up your data safely. Wherever you put your data, it should be encrypted. Ensure no one can access it without a password, including on a hard drive, if you choose to back it up there. Dedicated backup and disaster recovery services can help in the event of data loss and equip your team to avoid it in the future.
Updated Technology
We get it. Sometimes the last thing you want to do is lose precious moments of productivity just to update your computer, especially when it seems to happen all the time. However, think about why computers need to be updated. In most cases, it’s because something was discovered that didn’t work on the hardware, leaving users vulnerable or unable to do something. So, every time you update your computer to the latest version, you’re protecting your company and your data. It’s a simple step for our cybersecurity checklist for small businesses, but it’s still imperative.
Cyber Incident Response Plan
No one wants to think about the worst-case scenarios. But sometimes, it’s vital to ensure you and your company will survive and come out on the other side in the event of a cyber attack. We can’t stress enough how important it is to have a step-by-step plan for what you and your company will do if you are hacked. Luckily, with incident response services, an expert can outline that process for you and your team.
Plan out where you’ll get the finances should you need to recover money, how to get back your data, what to do moving forward after the event is over, and more. Planning for this now will help you save valuable time and headaches so you can get back on your feet as quickly as possible. If you’re unsure how to come up with this plan, this is a great segway into our final bullet on our cybersecurity checklist for small businesses.
Expertise on Cybersecurity Solutions for Small Business
Our favorite and most sacred tip for the small business cybersecurity guide is this: hire cybersecurity professionals to cover all your online security needs. Just like you hire freelancers to help fill in gaps for work, or hire cleaners to take care of your offices, you can also hire managed IT services to ensure you’re not in danger of a cyberattack. Cybersecurity experts at Integris are trained to follow all best practices, meaning you and your company will be protected head to toe.
Get Ongoing Cybersecurity Advice for Small Businesses
You’re trying to run a small business. Between everything you need to get done, the last thing you want to think about is how to fend off hackers. That’s why we recommend hiring an IT solutions company that is totally committed to ensuring you, your company, and your employees remain safe from cyber attacks.
We created Integris with one goal in mind: to help business owners like you gain confidence when it comes to your cybersecurity. We take care of everything for you. From planning for worst-case scenarios, to implementing solutions, to training your employees, Integris will check off every item on your cybersecurity checklist for small businesses. Ready to get started? Contact our team to learn more about cybersecurity and managed IT support for businesses.
