Think your business is too small or unimportant to attract a hacker’s attention?

Think again.

As large employers improve data security with sophisticated (and yes, expensive) systems, cybercriminals are “moving down the proverbial food chain” and targeting small and mid-sized businesses more frequently.

Even worse, these guys have effectively automated web hacking, using malicious bots to probe sites for vulnerabilities. The problem has become so massive, that as much as 80% of all traffic on sites with fewer than 1,000 visitors per day comes from automated bots.

Don’t be lulled into a false sense of security! Even if your business is small, you’re not “small potatoes” to a cybercriminal. Use these practical tips to guard against a malicious attack and keep your business data safe from hackers:

Know what you need to protect.

Start by assessing the prime targets. Credit-card information is the most obvious type of data hackers seek, but consider the other kinds of information you store which could harm you, your employees or your clients/customers if compromised. Prioritize your efforts to secure your most sensitive information first.

Scan your site the way hackers do.

Regularly use a web scanner to detect key vulnerabilities cyber criminals look for. Doing so minimizes opportunities for SQL injection or Cross Site Scripting (XSS) attacks, and provides insights for engineers to help you remediate other vulnerabilities.

Entrust experts with highly sensitive data.

If yours is a small or mid-sized businesses, don’t try to store extremely sensitive data (such as credit-card information or personal data) yourself. While you do incur some risk when handing it over to a third party, it’s far safer to leverage experts’ proven encryption and security protocols.

Turn your employees into data defenders.

Unfortunately, many attacks are the result of simple human negligence. But thankfully, that makes them highly preventable. Explain the importance of using secure passwords – and provide clear instructions for setting them (i.e., using a mix of upper and lower case, as well as including non-alphanumeric characters). Share examples of suspicious emails – and tell employees to never open attachments without scanning them first. Educate employees about the types of attacks out there, so they can help protect you.

Consider how secure your partners are.

When it comes to data security, never stick your head in the sand. Ask for proof that businesses you share information with (e.g., vendors or other third party providers) take appropriate measures to ensure the safety of your data. Ask how they manage security, and request proof that they’re compliant with security best-practices.

Is your business safe?

Give our technology experts a call. Serving businesses throughout North America, we can deliver the talented IT professionals and end-to-end tech solutions you need to reduce security risks and protect your business data.