The availability of modern security solutions means that there is no excuse for businesses not to be taking the appropriate measures to protect their organisation.
The internet has had a major impact on businesses. It allows organisations to reach markets and audiences all over the world; along with technologies like cloud computing, it was integral during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, when professionals needed to be able to access their work and communicate with colleagues virtually. In short, the internet has accelerated business considerably, but it has also come with an elevated risk of businesses falling victim to cyberattacks. We discussed this with a London-based managed IT support company, TechQuarters. Having provided IT support Law Firms rely on, in addition to many other industries whose work makes them cyber-targets, TechQuarters was able to discuss some of the easiest and most effective security measures a business can take to protect themselves.
- Organisation-wide Information Protection
Information protection is an important aspect of modern cybersecurity strategies, and must be enforced across the organisation. Companies now store information in many different ways – on PCs and laptops, on mobile devices, within applications and systems, on networks, in servers, etc. Have the appropriate protections on all endpoints and platforms is essential.
- External and Internal Firewalls
Firewalls help protect a network by monitoring and managing the traffic going in and out. Firewalls are most commonly external, meaning that they manage traffic from the web going into and out of a company’s network. A more advanced concept is the internal firewall, which manages traffic within the network, adding extra layers of protection.
- Mobile and Endpoint Management
Traditionally, the only devices that the average employee would use was a desktop PC, or perhaps a laptop. From their time providing IT support Legal Firms use, TechQuarters saw that mobile devices are increasingly popular among professionals, but also pose a significant risk, as it means that workers are taking sensitive information outside the perimeter of the company. Businesses that use mobile devices need to manage those endpoints so that company data residing on them is protected.
- Data Backups
With the amount of data that the average business has nowadays, this is an important measure to take. Cybercriminals often target a company’s data – either stealing it immediately, holding it ransom, or even simply corrupting it. All of these are valid reasons to implement data backups. Thanks to solutions like the cloud, it is much easier nowadays to backup data quickly and easily.
- Manage Wi-Fi Networks Used by Employees
With the rise of remote and hybrid working scenarios, Wi-Fi is being used increasingly among businesses, where they would traditionally only have used a local office network that devices had to be connected to. This is important, because Wi-Fi is harder to control, and may make it easier for hackers to access a network. Ensuring all Wi-Fi networks used by staff have the necessary protections is important.
- Control Access to Data and Permissions
It becomes increasingly likely that a data leak will happen when staff have access to data they do not need for their line of work. This is why access and permissions control can help with boosting organisational security. According to TechQuarters, whose work providing IT support North London businesses have relied on for 12 years has taught them a lot about data protection, access to data should be on a need-to-know, need-to-use basis.
- Password Management & Multi-Factor Authentication
A common risk in businesses is when staff aren’t using proper password practice – in other words, they use simple passwords, and re-use passwords. Businesses should promote the use of password managers to make it easier to maintain strong password security; businesses should also implement multi-factor authentication, which adds layers of security to all logins.
