What Every Small Business Owner Should Know about Basic Cyber Hygiene

Important Cyber Hygiene Guidelines Every Business Should Use 

Protect your business from damaging cyberattacks by implementing basic cyber hygiene procedures and getting expert IT help from an IT MSP when needed.   Cyberattacks are becoming increasingly commonplace and half of these attacks target small businesses that typically don’t have the financial resources needed to hire multiple, full-time IT experts. Thankfully, common-sense cybersecurity procedures can do wonders to protect your business from malicious third parties who want to extort your hard-earned funds, steal your valuable data, or gain access to classified trade secrets.

Basic Cyber Hygiene Procedures Every Business Should Use

• Ongoing cybersecurity training is a must. Do your employees know how to identify and deal with common online threats? Do they know how to prevent an attack or limit one that is in progress? If not, find an IT managed service provider that offers ongoing cybersecurity training to employees. It’s also wise to have a testing program in place to ensure your staff members stay aware of your company’s cybersecurity rules and implement them at all times.
• Limit access to information. Make sure your employees can only access the information they absolutely need to do their jobs. Limiting information access can limit the damage done by hackers who gain access to one person’s username and password. It can also prevent a massive data breach in the event a disgruntled employee gets upset with a small business owner and decides to “get even”.
• Make sure every single employee uses strong passwords. Strong passwords are passwords that contain both upper and lowercase letters, symbols and numbers. Such a password should only be used for a single application or program. Furthermore, it should never be written down on paper or saved in a .doc file. Use a password manager to keep passwords both strong and safe.
• Use two-factor authentication. Many people find two-factor authentication to be inconvenient, as they have to not only type in a password but also add an identification code that is sent to their mobile device. However, this small inconvenience is nothing compared to dealing with the aftermath of a ransomware attack or data breach. Two-factor authentication drastically limits a hacker’s ability to access your system because the cybercriminal would need both your password and mobile device to gain access.
• Patch and update your operating systems and software programs regularly. Software that hasn’t been updated is vulnerable to breaches as hackers continually look for and discover new vulnerabilities in commonly used programs. If you are using programs and/or operating systems that are reaching the end of life point, switch over to new programs that will invariably offer better protection from malicious third parties.

Do You Need the Services of an IT MSP?

It can be difficult to implement some of the basic cyber hygiene procedures listed above without professional assistance. Thankfully, small business owners no longer have to get by hiring a single IT technician to manage their systems. IT managed service providers offer a wide range of tools to help companies not only improve cybersecurity but also optimize IT systems to ensure the best possible performance at all times. Atlantic-IT is a leading IT managed service provider that specializes in working with businesses throughout New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Our cybersecurity services include:

• Penetration and vulnerability testing
• Ongoing testing
• Cybersecurity training
• Risk identification
• Endpoint protection
• Patch management
• Firewall systems
• Data encryption
• Malware blocking

Don’t take your business security for granted. Implementing the above-mentioned cybersecurity protocols doesn’t cost much and can save your business from devastating attacks and breaches. What’s more, you can also avail yourself of expert IT help at a very reasonable price by working with a knowledgeable IT managed service provider in your area. Get in touch with us at your convenience to learn more or to make an appointment with one of our IT experts at your convenience.