Why Cyber Security Is Important in 2021 and beyond
You wouldn’t leave your physical premises unlocked because there is a risk that someone could enter and take your valuable property. Although you can’t physically see your technology or cyber equipment, you still need to secure it or you run the risk of it being broken into and causing damage. If someone was to hack into your network systems it could cost you thousands if not hundreds of dollars immediately and then there is the repetitional damage which could cost you months to fix along with the loss of important data which could be harder to recover. These are just some of the reasons why you need to review your cyber security systems and we’ve covered each of them in further detail below.
Cyber Security breaches are an Australia wide problem
Australia is currently under a major cyber attack from many countries throughout the world and their number one targets are small to medium sized businesses and enterprises nation wide.
Hackers can & will try to hack your business applications
Brute force attacks, data breaches and email phishing is a daily occurrence happening all across the country. Many businesses don’t have two factor authentication or use easy passwords across all their applications.
Cyber breaches can cost you your business and thousands of dollars
Sadly we see and hear about these types of breaches and incidents all the time. Most of them involve some sort of demand for money or crypto currency to release your data but often cost even more in rebuilding your reputation and longer lasting damage.
Cyber security is important because it helps you ensure that your data is protected.
There are various elements to data protection that you should consider as part of your cyber security systems. One of these elements is storing the data securely. In some cases keeping a physical copy of your files is helpful however if the building was to burn down or got damaged in a flood then it would be damaged so you should always keep back up copies. Back up copies can be stored remotely through the cloud. The cloud describes data that is secured through the internet. This means that you can access it wherever you are. All you need is a password, a computer/ smart device and an internet connection and you’re ready to go. When setting up a password you should always choose one that is hard to guess and that you can easily remember. You should also be careful with who you give it to. If you have a lot of contractors walking through your business or high turnover then you probably shouldn’t share the password with them. Instead you should only share it with your long term staff who have been with your business a while. If you do give the passwords to contractors then you should be careful to change them when they leave so that they cannot use any of the information from your business. Another option is to only give them limited access rights so that you retain control of all your data and then revoking that access when they leave the company.
Many large companies have had large data breaches over the last few years. These large companies include Facebook. When you’re dealing with huge amounts of information or sensitive information like credit cards, date of birth or full name you should encrypt it so that it is not retained anywhere and therefore can’t be stolen and used for malicious purposes. Malicious use of data could cost your company money from losing your good reputation and it could also cost you clients in the future. In this day and age when people are more reliant on technology than ever before, people want to know that the data they shared is going to be treated with the respect and security it deserves. You should treat it like you would the lock to your house – only giving the key/passwords out to those you can trust.
5 Alarming Cyber Facts & Stats for Australian Business Owners
Cyber security is also important because if your data is accessed without permission, it could be used for fraudulent purposes. Transactions that you have not approved could be made in your name which could not only cost you money immediately, it could also cost you down the track due to loss of reputation and you could also lose your good credit rating if the fraudsters were to default on the transactions. A bad credit rating can take a minimum of 5 years to recover from and if your business relies on loans to fund it then the last thing you want is to have a negative credit rating. Although some businesses offer a credit repair service it can cost thousands of dollars depending on the size of your business. You are best to protect your data from the start and ensure the business has robust cyber security systems in place.
Another huge problem is that once your data has been compromised once it is much easier for it to be compromised again without the adequate cyber security systems, processes and education in place. One other way you can manage your cyber security is to regularly update your software and hardware. It’s a well known fact that some technology giants stop maintenance on older hardware and software after a certain timeframe or when new software or hardware is released. Regular updates means that you are protected from the latest threats which significantly reduces the risk that your cyber systems will be compromised. This is because there are IT professionals working around the clock to ensure that the latest threats are identified and quashed as fast as possible.
Reducing the risk of threats to your business also means that the risk of downtime is minimised. If your cyber security was threatened then there would be some downtime while it was fixed. That would cost you existing customers and it would cost you in future customers because your systems would be inaccessible. A prime example would be an online retail business whose website was hacked. That retail business relies on their website for their business and if it is hacked then all the security systems need to be reset and that can take days when you factor in testing and security checks.
Why Choose Us as your Cyber Security Support Provider?
Technology shouldn’t give you a headache and nor should it cost your business money if things go wrong, we are here to support you for the best of your business ensuring you’re always online and have a rock solid IT infrastructure to support you.