We don’t want our blog to be all about gloom and doom, and so we try to refrain from posting articles about hackers, malware, and other problems or disasters every week. Unfortunately, however, that doesn’t mean these issues aren’t still out there. In fact, one of the most significant threats to your business, ransomware, is becoming more prevalent every day.
The thing business owners and executives need to know about these kinds of cyber attacks is that they are becoming both more common and more sophisticated. The fact of the matter is that right now there is some criminal out there who would love to take your data hostage and charge you a small fortune to get it back.
Obviously, if you feel like you aren’t well-protected against these kinds of crimes, then your first move should be to call an IT provider (like our company). But in the meantime, let’s look at four simple things you can do to keep thieves away.
#1 Be Suspicious of Unknown Websites, Apps, or Attachments
Probably everyone in the world has heard this at some point by now. Still, it’s a good piece of advice that bears repeating again and again: if you aren’t familiar with a website, don’t recognize an email address, or come across an unknown app, then be very careful. These are the tools hackers use to break into your business.
#2 Make Sure Employees Are Trained and Informed
Of course, you might not be the only one who accesses the internet through company devices. That’s why you need good training – and commonsense web usage policies – for your entire team. That can minimize the risk that one of your employees will download something that ends up costing you a lot of money.
#3 Utilize Basic Cyber Security Safeguards on All Devices
Hackers are good at getting around firewalls, antivirus software, and other safeguards. Some protection is better than no protection, however, and the right tools can greatly minimize your risks. It’s well worth the small expense involved in installing these products to have good frontline defenses in place.
#4 Have a Good Backup and Data Recovery Plan in Place
In the event that ransomware does end up on your company computers, then the goal moves from preventing problems to recovering quickly. If you have backup files that can bring you back to a few minutes or hours before the problem first showed up, then you might be able to avoid costly repairs… not to mention disruption to your business, or worse, making payments to an online criminal.
The Best Time to Protect Your Company Is Now
Don’t start thinking about ransomware and other threats to your business after it’s already too late. Let us develop a cost-effective strategy to protect you against the risks you know about and ones you don’t. A free consultation is just a phone call away, so reach out to the Fantastic IT team today!