Wondering if your sensitive information can be exposed by cyber attacks? There are a number of it security risks that small businesses face, and it’s important to understand them to take the proper precautions – and avoid potentially costly data loss incidents.
1. Ransomware Attacks
This is one of the biggest cyber security threats in recent years. Businesses face steep costs associated with ransomware – it costs businesses more than $75 billion per year. But what is it?
Ransomware is a type of malware or virus. When downloaded onto a computer or a server, the virus encrypts the information located on the hard drive or other storage units – making it impossible for users to access.
Then, payment is requested by the hacker. Usually, you will have to pay the ransom via bitcoin or another cryptocurrency. If you don’t pay, you will lose access to the encrypted data permanently – so many companies simply pay the requested money to avoid this.
2. Phishing Emails
Phishing attacks are one of the most persistent threats to small businesses and large businesses alike. A phishing email is an email that looks like it’s been sent from a legitimate source – like Google, a vendor partner, or even another employee of your company.
But it’s fake – and these emails often contain links or attachments that can infect your computer with malware or viruses, and steal your sensitive data. They’re also often used to distribute ransomware.
It can be hard for employees to realize that they’re not opening an email from a legitimate source. According to a recent round up of phishing statistics, 30% of phishing messages are opened by the targeted users – and it’s been estimated that up to 90% of data breaches are related to phishing in some way.
This cybersecurity threat is very real and very dangerous – so we highly recommend implementing spam filters and other such tools to catch these messages, and to invest in training to help employees recognize phishing emails before they’re opened. This will help protect you from security risks and the loss of sensitive data.
3. DDoS Attacks (Distributed Denial of Service)
DDoS, or “Distributed Denial of Service” attacks are caused by hackers who use a “botnet” – a large number of internet-connected devices – to access your website simultaneously, overloading the server and taking it down.
DDoS attacks do not result in data loss, but can result in costly downtime for your network and website. Attackers may request payment or ransom to discontinue the attack, though it’s often possible to harden your network and implement IT security solutions to stop the DDoS attack on your own.
4. Employee Or Contractor Negligence
Negligence from employees and/or contractors can be a serious problem that leads to the loss of sensitive data. For example, if your employees use personal devices like phones and laptops to access company networks, cloud-based programs, and other data someone who steals the device could gain access to this information.
Proper training and safeguards – such as enabling two-factor authentication and disallowing employees/contractors from accessing corporate data on personal devices – can help minimize these security risks and protect your data.
Need Protection From Cyber Security Threats? Contact Technetics Consulting
At Technetics Consulting, we offer advanced protection from common cyber security threats, such as those outlined above. If you’re worried about your business data and security, we’re here to help. Contact us to get a cyber security assessment and learn more about how you can protect your data from hackers, data breaches, ransomware, and more.