Small Business and Cybersecurity

Hackers are targeting small businesses more than ever

As a small business owner or decision maker, you might rarely think about small business and cybersecurity.  After all, surely big business has a larger cache of treasures for hackers to capture.  But the truth is, hackers are targeting small businesses now more than ever, making small business cybersecurity savvy an absolute must.  The stakes are high: from preventing ransomware to protecting your proprietary information to customer data and personal information such as social security numbers and financial details, hackers want it all.  Worse, because many small business owners don't perceive the risk and fail to take appropriate security measures, all too many of them become easy targets.

Why do hackers target small businesses?

It's the big hacks that make the news: the corporate giants who fall prey to cybercriminals, often compromising hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of client records.  But what flies under the radar is the prevalence of small businesses that often operate virtually unprotected, and unsuspecting, leaving their sensitive data effectively unsecured.  Hackers know this--they know you're often too busy as a decision-maker in a small operation, and they also know you often don't have a robust cybersecurity team looking out for your interests.  Research shows that in 2018, 67% of small to medium-sized organizations experienced a cyberattack, and more than half of companies of this size had a data breach.

Worse, about half of these same companies revealed they had no cybersecurity knowledge about how to effectively protect themselves and their data.

Protecting your small business from cyberattacks and data breaches

When it comes to cybersecurity and small businesses, knowledge truly is power.  Here are some ways you can protect your data from hackers.

1. No matter the size of your business, across the board, employees represent a security risk. So, educate yourself about the risks your employees may present to your organization, and make security training a regular part of your employee onboarding and ongoing education plan. Institute security training for not just leadership but for all employees of your organization.  The experts at Locknet Managed IT can help; we provide security training that ensures your employees are up to date on current risks and how to mitigate your organization's risk overall. 
2. Statistically speaking, it isn’t a matter of if your business will have a cyberattack, it is a matter of when. Develop a contingency plan, so that you are ready, should a cyberattack or data breach occur.
3. Consider getting a security assessment to find out where you are vulnerable. Locknet can help identify weaknesses in your organization’s data security and address them before your company becomes a victim of cybercrime.

Small business cybersecurity: No small matter

Small business cybersecurity is a vital component of the sustainability of your business.  If you don't know where to start, you're certainly not alone.  The experts at Locknet Managed IT can help.  From identifying the security risks unique to your organization to building a custom security training program for your employees, our experts are ready.  Together, we'll protect your small business from the biggest threats from hackers.