Hackers are everywhere these days. According to the New York Post, more than one in three of Americans have been hacked or had their identity stolen. For business owners especially, being hacked can result in a massive financial loss and even the complete collapse of a company. Thankfully for you, whether you work in IT at a company or are the CEO, we have a complete guide to keeping your business data safe. Read on for five key tips to keep your business secure.
Encryption
Keeping your data encrypted makes it much harder for hackers to get at it. This involves setting up a decentralized platform through which your business is run. You can install them to work across all your IT platforms, meaning that if anyone manages to virtually break into your business, they won’t be able to decrypt your data. There should only be one vulnerability after this: your entry key, which can be secured by implementing the following.
Alphanumeric Passwords
Simply put, an alphanumeric password is one that uses a nonstandard combination of letters and numbers, meaning that it’s impossible to guess. These can easily be installed and secured through a third-party service, meaning that you won’t personally have to remember the passwords yourself. It is recommended not just to use numbers and letters, but to add in extra symbols so the password is extra secure.
Secure WiFi
Easily accessible WiFi networks can be broken into by hackers, giving them the opportunity to steal data throughout an entire company. That’s why we recommend having a WiFi network that can be accessible through a strong alphanumeric password only. While this can be a pain for people only temporarily visiting the office, it does grant you an extra level of security that will help your business be even freer from data breaches.
Cloud Backups
In the case of a breach or even if the data is mysteriously lost, like what recently happened to tens of thousands of government files in the UK, it is essential that everything is backed up via cloud storage. This means sleeping worry-free in the rare event that your data disappears. There are a lot of companies that offer this tool. One great recommendation is Acronify, an award-winning company that can help you back up everything in your company regardless of which platform or software you are using. You can learn more about their wide variety of offers at acronify.com.
Background Checks
When working in a business that traffics in secure data, it’s important that you can trust everyone in your company. That’s why we recommend doing thorough background checks so that you know that they have an honest purpose in joining your company and that you can trust them to competently handle any data for you.
There’s plenty of ways you can do this, from requesting they get the necessary information from the police to simply making sure that they have references from previous employers. This can also apply to employees who have left the company; make sure they sign contracts which then forbids them from sharing any of your company secrets!
