Author Archives: Vincent Barnett

5 Effective Up-To-Date Cyber Security Measures for Companies to Combat Hackers

Ransomware Attack

In the recent months, cyber crime headlines have constantly hit the news. Hundreds of companies are hacked each and every day. The dangers that are posed by cyber-criminals and state-backed hackers have proved to be a real threat to organizations all around the world.

With this wave of cyber crimes, now is the best time to proactively prevent your company from falling victim to such attacks. To help you get started, here are effective up-to-date measures that can help protect your company:

1. Use of Virtual Data Rooms (VDR)

VDRs are online storehouses where your business can securely store data. They also make it easier for employees and other authorized persons to share sensitive data within the company. Even though VDRs are commonly used to secure financial information, they can also be used to store legal documentations, intellectual property information, as well as tax paperwork. It’s almost impossible for hackers to access information that is stored in a VDR. So ensure that you get one!

2. Encrypt your data

Hackers usually target credit card accounts, banking routing digits, and employee social security numbers to steal from businesses. It is recommended that whenever important data is at rest, it is encrypted. Installing full-disk encryption tools to your system is the most convenient way of data encryption. Once on, these tools encrypt all the programs and files in your drive with negligible performance lag.

Furthermore, you can utilize encrypted messaging apps to communicate with your employees. For instance, this year Facebook Messenger added an end-to-end encryption feature for advanced information security. Not all messaging apps, however, contain this encryption feature. So before sharing any information, ensure that you review the app you’re using.

3. Get cyber security insurance

Yes, there is cyber security insurance! If you are a business owner, you definitely need this. Even though we all hope that cyber security breaches never happen, hope is just not good enough. We need to ensure that this risk is covered.

A cyber security insurance will protect your business from various cyber threats. And if there is a security breach, your company will not be crippled by paying tons of money in a lawsuit. Instead, your insurance policy will cover all your legal costs.

4. Hire “White Hat” hackers to test your system

To prevent sophisticated attacks, these ethical hackers can be quite resourceful. They’ll perform high-level penetration tests and attacks – with the company’s consent of course – and identify weak points in the systems. They’ll also help seal the weak points to prevent external attacks. White hat hackers are more effective and efficient than routine in-house tests.

5. System hardening

This is also referred to as security tightening or lockdown. It involves activities such as deactivating unnecessary software that form the basis of simple cyber attacks, configuring software for optimum use, as well as configuring the operating system for better security. System hardening is usually carried out in a step-by-step approach to iteratively reduce the exposed attack surfaces and increase the defensive layers.

Summing up, many security breaches are caused by employees clicking on malicious links or handing over sensitive information unintentionally to hackers who present themselves as reputable persons. Therefore, it is imperative that you supply your employees with the best practices such as securing networks when working remotely and using strong passwords to access company information. All these measures will come a long way in ensuring that critical information is secure.