Cyber Security Measures for Businesses

In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, cybersecurity has emerged as a top concern for organisations. As more businesses move their services and data online, they are putting themselves at risk for cyber-attacks. It is crucial for organisations to implement cybersecurity measures and best practices to protect themselves from these threats.

Why is Cybersecurity Important?

Cybersecurity is imperative because digital assets are susceptible to attacks. With the increasing dependency on online transactions, from ordering groceries to accessing bank accounts and using credit cards, a large number of people are vulnerable to cyber-attacks. It is not just big organisations with valuable data that are targeted, but also small and medium enterprises and individuals. Cybersecurity is important for everyone, as anyone can be a target.

Common Cybersecurity Measures

To prevent cyber-attacks, organisations should follow common cybersecurity measures. These measures include:

1. Secure Configuration: Remove or disable redundant functionality from systems and promptly fix known weaknesses or vulnerabilities through patching.
2. Network Security: Develop and implement simple policies, appropriate architectural and technical responses to decrease the chances of systems and technologies being attacked.
3. Malware Prevention: Develop and implement appropriate anti-malware tools to reduce the risk of malicious software impacting the organisation’s systems and services.
4. Managing Identity and Access Management: Provide users with appropriate system privileges and rights based on their roles and responsibilities. Carefully measure and manage privileged access.
5. Removable Media Control: Implement an IT policy to control access to removable media, limiting media types and usage. Periodically scan and review access logs for all media before importing data onto systems.
6. Virtual Private Network (VPN) for Work from Home (WFH) Employees: Use a VPN to encrypt web traffic and hide IP addresses, restricting attackers from performing DDoS attacks and hiding activities from Internet Service Providers.
7. User Education, Awareness, and Training: Educate employees about cyber threats and data leakage to ensure they can do their jobs while also helping to keep the organisation secure.

Essential Cybersecurity Measures

In addition to common cybersecurity measures, organisations should also implement essential cybersecurity measures to protect their assets from cyber-attacks. These measures include:

1. Use Strong and Complex Passwords: Use strong passwords with a combination of alphanumeric characters, upper and lower case letters, and special characters. Avoid using easily guessable passwords or reusing passwords across multiple systems.
2. Keep Software Up to Date: Regularly update software and applications to patch security vulnerabilities and protect against known threats.
3. Use Anti-Virus Protection: Install and use anti-virus software to detect and remove viruses and other malicious software from systems.
4. Use Two-Factor or Multi-Factor Authentication: Implement multifactor authentication to add an extra layer of security by requiring users to provide multiple credentials to confirm their identity.
5. Access Control to Data and Systems: Implement access control policies to verify user identities and grant appropriate access levels to resources.
6. Put Up a Firewall: Use a firewall to monitor and filter incoming and outgoing network traffic, allowing non-threatening traffic in and keeping unsafe traffic out.
7. Use Security Software: Install and use security software to monitor and prevent threats, such as network security monitoring tools, encryption tools, and web vulnerability scanning tools.
8. Regularly Update Programs and Systems: Keep software and systems up to date to patch security flaws and protect against known vulnerabilities.
9. Learn About Phishing Scams: Be suspicious of emails, phone calls, and flyers and be aware of common phishing scams used to steal sensitive information.
10. Protect Your Sensitive Personal Identifiable Information (PII / SPII): Implement data privacy frameworks and security controls to prevent data loss or leakage of sensitive information.
11. Monitor for Intrusion: Use intrusion detection systems to monitor and detect suspicious activities and generate alerts when threats are detected.
12. Use Public Wi-fi with Caution: Avoid using public Wi-fi networks unless they are encrypted and have multifactor authentication protocols in place to protect data from potential attackers.
13. Raise Awareness: Create a culture of cybersecurity awareness by educating employees and vendors about cyber threats and best practices for protecting sensitive information.
14. Review Your Online Accounts & Credit Reports Regularly: Regularly check your online accounts and credit reports for any unauthorised changes or suspicious activity.
15. Backup Your Data Regularly: Regularly backup your data to protect against data loss in the event of a system failure or cyber-attack.

By implementing these cybersecurity measures, organisations can protect their systems and data from cyber-attacks and minimise the risk of security breaches. It is important to continuously update and improve these measures as new threats emerge in the ever-evolving landscape of cybersecurity.