You may be hearing a lot about cyber security at the moment with the steep rise in cyber crime in recent years. Businesses are looking for the best ways to protect themselves against the ever-increasing threat from hackers as cyber crime methods become more and more sophisticated, in line with rapid advances in technology.
The statistics are alarming, with the number of UK businesses suffering cyber attacks doubling over the last 5 years according to a cyber security report by internet provider, Beaming. The report found that 1.5 million organisations fell victim to cyber crime in 2019, which is 25% of all UK businesses. Malware and phishing were identified as the most common tools used in these attacks, with malware attacks successful 20% of the time in smaller businesses and 31% of the time in larger businesses and phishing attacks successful 29% of the time in smaller businesses and 38% of the time in larger businesses. Amongst these attacks, the organisations’ employees have been responsible for just over a third of security breaches, be it through malicious intent or neglect.
There are three main ways you can ensure that you are doing the best to secure your vital data, systems and infrastructure from cyber attacks. These are protection, testing and training.
There are a variety of cyber security solutions available which will increase your organisation’s defences against cyber attacks. This includes protection technology such as firewalls, multi-factor authentication and anti-virus software. Having these layers of protection and monitoring in place alongside premium technology to track and monitor your systems in real-time are essential in helping you and your colleagues mitigate cyber risks.
Hackers have developed ways to get into even the best protected computer security systems. They can enter your network without leaving any signs and can remain there undetected for as long as 18 months which can mean huge financial losses or implications to your business’ reputation.
Firewall hardware or software is a security device that helps protect your network by filtering the traffic that enters it, stopping unauthorised users from accessing the confidential data stored on your computer. It can also stop malicious software from infiltrating your computer.
Different types of firewalls provide different levels of protection so it is worth investing in a good quality product.
Multi-factor authentication is designed to protect your user accounts from cyber attackers trying to steal credentials or exploit weak credentials.
It is a two (or more) step verification process which requires users to enter a username and password or pin but also to approve authentication requests via an a smartphone app or another device. Some multi-factor authentication processes also involve providing biometric data such a fingerprint.
This acts as protection against phishing, social engineering and password attacks.
Another key element in keeping your systems safe is anti-virus software. Anti-viruses work by detecting a virus, identifying which type of virus it is then working to remove it from your computer or quarantine it so that it cannot cause any further damage.
Anti-viruses can also act as a preventative measure, performing system scans to monitor your device and system files searching for possible threats and using real-time threat detection to guard your computer system against potential risks as they arise.
This means that they prevent a wide range of problems such as poor computer performance or complete failure, damaged system parts, stolen personal details or the sending of unauthorised messages.
In order to combat highly developed malware viruses, it is important to have the latest in anti-virus protection.
Testing your systems is an excellent way to see if your they are currently cyber safe or if you need to put further security measures in place to avoid security risks. Penetration testing involves putting your network through a simulated cyber attack to see how it would hold up in the event of a real attack.
Expert testers will put your IT system to the test, identifying any vulnerabilities and trying to exploit them, as a hacker would do in real life. They will then provide recommendations and guidelines as to how to address these so that your organisation can become more cyber secure.
A technical report will be written, highlighting all of the relevant issues and giving suggestions as to how to counteract the low, medium and high risk vulnerabilities detected that could be targeted by cyber criminals in future and compromise your network. For each issue identified, there will be an overview, an analysis and security recommendations which can be implemented to provide extra security to your systems and applications.
The best way to ensure that your organisation remains secure is to test your networks regularly; you could see it as an auditing process. Specific industry and legal requirements may dictate a certain amount of testing meaning you have to carry out frequent tests and security evaluations.
An advantage of carrying out systematic reviews is that it will reassure your clients, partners and suppliers that they are dealing with a business which takes cyber security seriously and that their data is in safe hands.
Lastly, it is vital to ensure that your colleagues are fully trained in cyber security so they know how to identify and mitigate security risks to your business. According to Mitigate Cyber, the cyber security company, 80% of cyber breaches take place due to staff error and a huge 45% of employees receive no security training from their employer.
Cyber security courses provide your colleagues with essential training on the core principles, practices and policies surrounding data security, information security, GDPR compliance and data and technology handling. They are a source of the most up-to-date information on cyber security and so, once disseminated to all members of staff, will help significantly lower overall cyber risks to your business.
Training courses can be tailored to your organisation’s specific security requirements and online courses provide a flexible approach to learning with the options to select modules which are most relevant to your businesses’ needs.
Some courses also have tracking and reporting systems which make it easy to implement cyber security across your organisation and identify any training weaknesses which can then be strengthened with targeted training.
Even with the best cyber security measures in place, it is still possible that hackers will be able to infiltrate your network and gain access to your vital data or cause damage to your systems. Therefore, it is important to have a good backup and disaster recovery strategy to ensure that you are covered if the worst case scenario occurs.
Cloud Recovery solutions ensure your data is recoverable within minutes, hours or days. With Backup as a Service (BaaS), your off-site data backups are always secure meaning that you won’t lose any of your important data. With Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS), you have extra reassurance that copies of your production servers are in a ready-to-go state so you can get back up and running in no time.
Gaining a cyber security accreditation such as Cyber Essentials shows your clients and suppliers that your organisation is cyber safe and that you take your responsibilities of protecting their data seriously.
The Cyber Essentials certification is backed by the government and ensures that your business has a good base level of cyber security, protecting you against 80% of cyber attacks and data theft. To get accredited, your business must complete an online questionnaire outlining various aspects of your cyber safety measures and backing this up with supporting documents. You may benefit from some assistance with this from an cyber security IT specialist.
Having the certification means that you can work on government contracts and with organisations who only deal with Cyber Essentials accredited businesses.
More and more businesses are transitioning over to the Cloud and with this has come an increase in security incidents involving cloud platforms and services. Microsoft 365 is one of the most popular cloud platforms and hence frequently targeted by hackers due to the amount of valuable data it holds. Reviewing your system for any misconfigurations and process weaknesses and checking user settings is crucial in terms of protecting your network and ensuring you are not leaving yourselves exposed to cyber crime.
Mitigate 365 testing packages provide a hassle-free way of making sure that your new systems are set up correctly or that current ones are thoroughly reviewed and secured. Cyber security experts will check all of your security settings to make sure that they are correct and fully optimised so that you are protected against phishing, malware and cyber attacks.
For more information about how we can help you secure your network, contact us, call us on 0121 3680119 or email us at hello@ebcgroup.co.uk.