Cybersecurity Best Practices

The internet offers many benefits, not only in our everyday lives, but also for businesses. If used properly, it has the potential to simplify workflows and allow your staff to be more efficient, productive, and collaborative. However, this connectivity is a double-edged sword, as the internet usage has its own risks, namely cyber threats.

Cybersecurity Best Practices

Most companies are hit by viruses and social engineering attacks almost on a daily basis. Contrary to popular belief, these threats affect more than just big corporations. Many small- to medium-sized organizations are frequently targeted by criminals as well. What would happen if your company became the victim of a cyber attack? The best way to make sure your business never has to personally find out the answer to that question is to follow data security best practices.

Computer security best practices refers to all the good cybersecurity habits you and your employees should be following during your day-to-day operations. You may already know a few, such as following company internet usage rules or contacting IT if you notice something suspicious. By paying attention to cybersecurity best practices, you can drastically lower the odds of your business becoming a victim of a cyber attack.

Here are a few additional best practices you should know.

Be Aware of Phishing

Phishing is a social engineering tactic that’s specifically designed to trick you into performing an action or divulging information. The most common way this is done is through email or pop-up windows. These attempts may ask you to click on a link or to open a file that’s attached to the message. It only takes one click from you for the phisher to gain access to your system.

Always be aware and never put personal or company information in an email, pop-up, or other form of communication. Scams such as these tend to have spelling mistakes or suspicious web domains. Keep an eye out for these errors and don’t forget to report anything you think is less than trustworthy to your IT team.

Create a Strong Password

This may seem obvious, but you would be surprised by how many workers create passwords as weak as “password1” or something similar. It’s understandable that memorizing passwords can be a hassle, especially tough ones. However, it’s important to remember why passwords are necessary in the first place; they’re needed to prevent others from accessing your account.

A good password should use a mix of random characters, numbers, capitalization, and symbols. The passwords you create should also be changed regularly to keep them from becoming compromised. If you’re worried about having to remember complex passwords, installing a password manager would be a good idea. A password manager stores all of your passwords, so you only have to remember the password to get into your password manager.

Secure Your Wi-Fi

Wireless internet is great for allowing staff to work online from anywhere in the office. It’s also simple to connect to, all you need to do is find the name of the network and click “connect.” The only problem is that anyone within the vicinity of the network can connect with the network as well, including cyber criminals.

The Wi-Fi for your office should always be secure, encrypted, and hidden. Taking these steps can prevent unwanted outsiders from causing trouble. Additionally, if you’re working in a home office, you can protect yourself by using a virtual private network (VPN).

Embrace Security Awareness Training

Its employees are the biggest vulnerability an organization has. As mentioned earlier, hackers love to target businesses, and they often do it through social engineering directed at employees. If your staff doesn’t know what a cyber threat looks like, the more likely they are to accidentally invite intruders into your network.

Take the time to train and teach your team about what threats are out there, what they look like, the damage it could cause to the business, and what to do if they see something suspicious. Remember that it’s your responsibility to make sure they know the company’s cybersecurity policies.

Stay Safe With ZenGroup

For comprehensive cybersecurity solutions, trust the experts at ZenGroup. We are an industry-leading IT provider that specializes in the area of network security. Our IT security services keep your organization protected from even the worst cyber threats.