With so many high profile cyber-attacks making the headlines this year. It reinforces the need for everyone to take cyber security seriously. Businesses both large and small are vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Setting practices in place, however, can help you to mitigate the risk of a cyber-attack in your business.
Check out these six tips for keeping safe online:
- Keep all your software, operating systems and web browsers up to date with security patches and regular updates. Ensure that any updates offered are installed on devices across your business, as they may contain vital security upgrades.
- Install anti-virus and anti-malware software on all devices, as above ensure that these are regularly updated.
- Use strong passwords. A couple of options for this one – you can use passwords that include upper and lower case characters, numbers and special characters, these, however, may be difficult to remember. Another option is to use three random words as your password, easier to remember but still incredibly difficult for hackers to crack.
- Always, always, always use different passwords for different software and systems.
- Be cautious of emails from unknown senders – no prince in a far-off land wants to give you ten million dollars, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is. Avoid clicking on links in emails from people or companies that you aren’t familiar with.
- Train your staff, ensure that all staff members are aware of the simple practices they should be following to keep them and your business safe.
These are just a few of the basic steps that you can take to protect your business. October is Cyber Security Awareness month. You can find out more about this campaign and how to keep your business safe.