Cybersecurity: The Key to Succes for Your Modern Business

There’s no doubt that technology is becoming increasingly important for pretty much every industry out there.  We all have a lot of sensitive data that is processed and shuffled around each and every day, and that’s just a simple fact.  Unfortunately, if we aren’t vigilant and we don’t protect that data, then it can lead to a lot of trouble.

Therefore, we as businesses have a duty to protect the information of our customers as well as our own details – we don’t want any of that to get out.  This is just one aspect of why cybersecurity is so important.  Did you know that there are courses that can teach us the principles of cybersecurity, as well as how to implement it into our regular workflow?

You can find an example of that here: https://ine.com/blog/types-of-cybersecurity-training, but don’t worry if some of it is still sounding a bit confusing.  Today, we’re here to explain why these courses can be helpful, along with some details on how they work.

What is Cybersecurity?

The first thing we have to establish is this: what is cybersecurity?  Put simply, it’s the process of defending our networks, data, and even devices from any external threats.  To enhance the effectiveness of this defense, incorporating threat intelligence best practices is crucial.

Beyond that, though, it also involves the way that we as businesses handle our information.  We need to make sure that our data is accessible when necessary and relevant, as well as ensuring that it’s confidential and that we’re retaining integrity when we handle data.  All of this falls under the cyber security bubble.

Risks Involved When You Don’t Utilize These Practices

As you can probably imagine, there are more risks than ever for companies that aren’t incorporating cybersecurity strategies into their workflow.  The biggest ones are hackers accessing your data, or viruses / malicious pieces of code wriggling into your system and causing havoc.

Each person who has access to your network should be trained in these techniques, at least to an extent.  This helps to keep everyone safe.  After all, even work email accounts are susceptible to spam mail that can be risky if it’s opened.  Viruses are often hidden in them, and all it takes is one person who doesn’t realize what the risks are for them to infiltrate your entire network.

Therefore, we have to be diligent on an organizational level.  Bear that in mind as you consider strategies that we can implement to protect our information.

Basic Practices

For now, let’s cover some of the simple things that you and any employees can do to improve cyber security.  These will likely be covered in further detail in a training course as well, but they’ll delve into things that are much more complex.

Anti-Virus Software

Many folks are plenty familiar with the concept of anti-virus programs already, but it’s worth mentioning them.  Ideally, any computers that employees regularly access will come with pre-installed antivirus software – beyond what the manufacturer provides in the operating system.

Thankfully, there are easy ways to ensure this happens.  Before handing out a laptop or workstation to an employee, we can simply install that software and schedule it to run scans on a regular basis.  You can also send out periodic reminders for scans if you are still concerned.

Keep Software Updated

Another facet that’s quite easy to implement is this: keeping any software installed up to date.  While it may seem strange to include something so simple into cybersecurity strategies, you can read about why we make note of it on this page.  Essentially, we want to do this so that external threats aren’t able to take advantage of any vulnerabilities that can come from outdated programs.

Don’t Keep Default Usernames and Passwords

Depending on the platform that you use (including if you have developed it specifically for your business), there’s a chance that new employees or clients are given default usernames and passwords in order to log into the system.  You should be sure to tell them to change these defaults, since it’s far easier to hack into an account that has not changed these defaults.

In a similar vein, everyone in your organization should have strong passwords.  You can create certain rules to make sure this happens, such as passwords not being accepted if they’re under a certain character limit, if they don’t include numbers or special characters, etc.

Cybersecurity Courses

Whether you’re a big or a small organization, it’s a pretty big deal to ensure that your workforce is aware of these practices and that they’re prepared to regularly implement them.  That’s where training courses on this topic can come in handy.  You can have them complete the coursework and feel more confident that your organization will be kept safe.