By October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month. This event was co-founded 15 years ago by the National Cyber Security Alliance and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to help raise awareness of cyber threats and to reduce the likelihood of a breach to systems large and small. Although several recent high-profile hacks have raised public awareness of cyber security over the past several years, how much do you really know about protecting your business? With NCSAM underway, there’s no better time to talk about cyber security and what commercial security in Kansas City can do to help.
The theme of National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) 2018 is that cyber security is more than just a personal concern—it’s a shared responsibility, and we must all work together to help improve our total security ecosystem. The campaign focuses on a different online safety or cyber security issue during each week in October. Here’s our week-by-week list of what you can do to better prepare yourself and protect your business against online threats in October and throughout the year. But cyber security isn’t just about firewalls and antivirus software. Commercial security systems and related services can provide an important line of defense against cyber threats and benefit businesses of all sizes as part of the effort toward better cyber security.
Week 1: Taking Online Safety Seriously
Many of the problems that businesses face when it comes to cyber security start with their own computers. Studies have shown that giving employees access to the internet from their work stations can offer benefits in communication, research, and even productivity, but it also brings with it new dangers, such as phishing scams, viruses, and more. If you employ an IT department, you’re probably already aware of these challenges, but anti-virus and anti-malware applications, while vital, are only part of the solution. It is equally important to make sure that employees are trained in the basics of cyber security best practices, such as not clicking on links in suspicious emails and locking their work computers when they’re not in use to prevent unauthorized access.
Week 2: Cyber Security Extends from One Floor to the Next
This ties in nicely with the overall theme for this year’s NCSAM: Security is everyone’s responsibility. What happens to one computer in the building can happen to all of them. Data breaches and hacks don’t begin and end with the sales floor or the customer service department. They can start at the very top of the company or even in your IT department, and they can attack and infect businesses and organizations of all types, from finance to healthcare to manufacturing. It doesn’t matter whether your company seems like a “high-value” target or not, every business needs to practice good cyber security, and everyone at your company should have access to cyber security training. To help make sure that everyone from the sales staff to the executive team is up-to-date on how to keep ahead of cyber attacks, why not post a list of best practices around the office where everyone can see it?
Week 3: Cyber Security Has the Potential to Affect Everyone Personally.
Cyber security isn’t just about protecting company assets and systems. If your company is targeted by a cyber attack, the hackers may be looking for personal information or digitized records belonging to company staff, customers, or clients that can then be leveraged or resold. This can lead to identity theft and other dangers. Once a hacker has access to one person’s information, the whole system becomes compromised. That’s why it’s important to be sure that everyone in your company is using strong passwords and keeping them safe. Employees should never share passwords or logins, and it’s important that everyone knows not to give out account details. If you see anything that looks suspicious, report it to your IT support team right away, and train your employees to do the same. It helps keep everyone safe.
Week 4: We’re Always Connected
These days, we mostly take connectivity for granted. From phones to laptops and other mobile devices, most of us are online in one form or another everywhere we go. That can be incredibly useful when it comes to managing work, especially when we’re traveling, but it also opens us up to cyber threats. Public wireless networks, in particular, can put company systems and mobile devices at risk. The Wi-Fi network at the office may be encrypted, but that’s not the case when we connect at the airport or at the local coffee shop. Even if you’re just checking work emails, unencrypted Wi-Fi signals are broadcast using radio waves, meaning that your online activity can be seen by anyone in range who has the right software. Privacy is good for business, so stop and think before you use an unsecured public Wi-Fi network for business or any other sensitive activity.
Week 5: Premise Security Systems Can Be a First Defense
As we said in week one, many of our biggest cyber security challenges begin with the computers in our very own office. But not all of those threats come in through our internet connection. From unauthorized users sitting down at unsecured work stations to intruders who can steal or access critical business documents, systems, or even computers themselves, commercial security systems in Kansas City can provide a first line of defense against theft, unauthorized access, and more. The best commercial security systems include access controls that tell you who is in the building and when, as well as camera systems that can record suspicious activity. Whether it’s computers in the building, servers in the basement, or mobile devices stored in work trucks, premise security can help protect your systems. This will then protect your data from malicious interference.
A-TEC Commercial Security has been helping businesses (and homeowners) protect their property, their assets, and their people for more than 20 years. To learn more about how commercial security systems in Kansas City can help protect your business against physical intrusions that can lead to cyber threats, contact A-TEC Security today.