by Karen Stern
Small businesses have a lot to manage, but cybersecurity should remain a top priority. Unfortunately, it gradually moves further down the list because of common concerns.
Do any of these sound familiar?
* “My budget is limited when it comes to IT and cybersecurity.”
* “We don’t have anyone in the company who really understands cybersecurity threats and can implement the necessary changes.”
* “Our workforce isn’t educated on cybersecurity threats.”
* “My priority is to grow the company and keep the engine running.”
Other responsibilities shouldn’t prevent you from taking precautions.
Thankfully, there are easy, budget-friendly ways to proactively protect your business:
1. Take inventory of your hardware and software and boot off unknown devices and users. Many businesses don’t know what’s on their networks.
2. Make sure your applications are set to auto-update or implement a process to install security patches every month. As a firm that does simulated hacking for our clients, we see how unpatched software leaves businesses vulnerable.
3. Incentivize your employees to create strong passwords and encourage a password manager. During simulated hacking attempts for clients, we have encountered powerful security defenses but bypassed them with weak user passwords (e.g., Password1).
4. Look for a privacy-focused DNS provider and consider using ad blockers on web browsers. Doing so helps prevent users from clicking bad links.
5. Back up your systems every night. Ransomware causes more issues for companies without backed up files.
On Wednesday, June 19, Bill Gogel, advisory services manager at Brown Smith Wallace, will host a free webinar to discuss additional cybersecurity strategies. You can register for our Q2 Advisory Risk Briefing Webinar: Current-State Cyber Vulnerabilities at brownsmithwallace.com/events.
Karen Stern, CPA, (kstern@bswllc.com), partner in charge, Brown Smith Wallace Entrepreneurial Services Group, provides tax and accounting services for companies ranging from start-ups to $20 million in revenue.
Submitted 5 years 209 days ago