Protecting your business from cybercriminals is something that every business – big or small – needs to worry about. Small businesses are easier targets for hackers, while big businesses will always have some opportunistic criminal out to breach their defenses. Big businesses, however, can afford to have a talented and dedicated team on their hands. That isn’t true for small businesses, but thankfully, you can better protect yourself, even on a tight budget, with these cybersecurity basics.
1. Use a VPN
A VPN is a very easy way to encrypt your activity online. Your data is your business, and without that VPN encrypting your activity, your data could end up either in the hands of other businesses or in the hands of a cybercriminal. It would help if you made it standard in your office and in your personal life to use a VPN, and you can get them for a great price. NordVPN, for example, can cost as little as $3.71 per month if you subscribe to a three-year plan, and that’s without also looking and adding on the NordVPN coupons you find online to reduce the price even further. With discounts and coupons available, keeping your business protected can be cheap and effective.
2. Use Unique Passwords
It isn’t just your own servers and systems that you need to worry about. Every time you make an account online, you are actually increasing the number of risks to yourself and your business. If any of those businesses you have an account hack in, they could have your email and password. Sure, that may be the only thing they got from you during the hack, but if that email and password are the same ones you use for your own business or more critical accounts, like your social media, then you could have a hacker with access to everything you have.
Unique passwords mean that the hack stops there. They cannot go further, and the rest of your presence online is safe.
3. Use All of the Available Security Features
Go through your computer’s security features, the tools you use, and your online accounts and turn them all one. Most commonly, this will look like two-factor authentication and security questions. As a lot of the information in security questions can be found online, try to use more obscure ones or create a unique set of answers to protect yourself. For example, make up a surname for your mother’s maiden name. Keeping it consistent can ensure you remember, but by using a false name, you ensure no one will ever be able to guess.
4. Train Yourself to Recognize Scam and Spam
It’s a good idea to keep track of trending scam and spam attacks. This way, you know what to look for and how to protect yourself from the same scams that have been hitting people and businesses like yours successfully in the past.
5. Convey What You Have Learned to Your Employees
Train your employees, friends, and family in how they can stay safe online. This is the best way to improve your security all around and can also help you protect your loved ones and employees.