According to studies, 20% of people in the United States have been victims of ransomware attacks.

These attacks are problematic and damaging to both individuals and businesses. Aside from ransomware, cyberattacks, in general, are rampant at the moment, to the point that protecting against these threats requires a good deal of time and effort.

This is particularly true if you run a business. So what should you know about business cybersecurity? What should you know about compliance and security planning?

We’re happy to help. Keep reading to learn more about handling your business cyber security in an effective way.

Take a Top-Down Look at Your Company’s Cybersecurity Needs

When you’re putting together cybersecurity plans, make sure that you’re taking an overall, top-down approach.

Tackling your company’s cybersecurity is something that you will need to keep up with on a regular basis. The way that you handle cybersecurity for your small business will dictate how both your employees and customers are protected.

Consider the number of people that you staff, how many devices are used throughout your company, the type of data that you create and store, your storage needs, and a host of other matters.

Hashing out these details will give you a solid foundation when creating a quality cybersecurity plan.

Begin Tracking Cybersecurity Metrics

When you begin tracking your cybersecurity metrics, it lets you know your company’s vulnerabilities so that you can fix them.

Some of the main cybersecurity metrics that you need to track include intrusion attempts, vulnerability patch response times, data volume, and others. There are some software packages that you can use to track these instances.

While recognizing that breach attempts were made can be alarming, it’s better to know where you stand with your systems so that you can shore up vulnerabilities. Tracking these variables will keep you ahead of the curve.

Train Your Staff in Protocols and Policies

One of the best pieces of business cyber security advice to follow is to make sure everyone in your building is trained to the fullest.

Handling security needs to become part of the culture of your company. Train each and every one of your employees and your management, so that they know how to operate. Set forth internet usage guidelines that are clear so that you can limit the risk that you take on when you access any website.

Put all of your policies in writing so that everyone is clear on expectations. Once the policies are put into writing, make sure you stick to them. Constantly revisit your policies and update them when needed.

Make sure that training is included with employee onboarding and that you are continuously providing refresher courses with the most pertinent cybersecurity information.

Make Strong Passwords a Requirement

A guide to business security isn’t complete without strong passwords.

No matter how complex cybersecurity matters become, creating strong passwords will always be one of the most important steps you can take. Traditional security practices would dictate that you set your platforms up to only allow passwords that consist of combinations of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, symbols, and a minimum character count.

This is not bad advice but it is outdated, especially as more passwords become compromised and then bought and sold on the dark web. Today, a strong password is one that is unique to the account it is being used for, a minimum of 12 characters, and one that uses totally random characters instead of being based on a dictionary word. A password manager can help you remember all of these different passwords.

By requiring everyone in your organization to create strong passwords using the above guidance, you can make it more difficult for a hacker to gain access to your systems.

Routinely Get Patches and Software Updates

Updating your software is another critical step to take if you’re trying to keep your company secure and in compliance.

Every piece of software has potential vulnerabilities. The longer it is on the market, the more these vulnerabilities and the knowledge of them get exposed. This is why updates are so important.

New versions and patches work to circumvent those problems and protect against those vulnerabilities. Many companies drag their feet when it comes time to download and install updates that are readily available.

Jump on updates and patches as soon as you can so that you’re doing your best to protect all of your applications, endpoints, and data.

Put Artificial Intelligence (AI) to Use

You can also use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to help with your cybersecurity. It’s one of the fastest-growing industries in tech and otherwise.

There are some AI platforms you can use that will track cybersecurity threats and metrics, and come up with strategies that keep you ahead of the curve. Allowing the AI to think several steps ahead and solve problems can help you combat hackers that are using AI and machine learning to do the same.

Having access to AI that protects you from these threats will pay off in the long term and prevent you from experiencing downtime and financial loss.

Safeguard Your Server Room

If you’re setting up a server room, it’s important that you manage the security of it. The primary benefit of setting up your own data hosting environment is that you have complete ownership and control of your data.

While having your own server room is advantageous, it’s also something that you need to protect at all costs. Allowing intruders access to server rooms and data centers can badly compromise your business in several ways.

Put measures in place that protect the software, hardware, and physical property in the server room or data room. This means putting access control into place so that people need to punch in a code, use a key card, or even a combination of authentication factors to gain access.

Use Role-Based Access Controls based on the job role of the employee, and make sure that logs of every entry and exit are kept. Install surveillance cameras and make sure that footage is kept both in the cloud and on local hard drives for redundancy.

You also need to control access to the data itself from your LAN and the Internet. Ensure your servers are monitored unauthorized access, protect them with EDR, and keep them up-to-date with the latest patches.

Some companies will contract a third-party data center to provide these services and manage the hardware hosting your data. This can be cost-effective but comes with its own set of security and reliability concerns that need to be addressed when moving to a cloud-based solution.

Look Into Managed Security Services

Hiring a managed security service provider (MSSP) is one of the absolute best steps that you can take for your cybersecurity needs. These professionals will carry the load with your information technology (IT) and will monitor your systems and put safeguards into place.

When you outsource to managed service providers, you’ll get rapid incident response, security asset management relief, and precise and intuitive monitoring of active and potential threats.

Leaving this work to other professionals will allow you to focus on the work that you do best, while allowing them to handle your cybersecurity needs. You’ll pay these professionals a flat fee monthly or annually so that you can be hands-off with this aspect of your company’s needs.

Understand the Different Types of Cybersecurity Threats and Data Breaches

Cybersecurity attacks are on the rise, and there are many different types. Some examples of cybersecurity threats that are common right now include man in the middle attacks (MITM), Denial of Service Attacks (DDoS), SQL injection attacks, phishing attacks, ransomware, password attacks, and session hijacking.

Because these attacks are so different, it’s important that you learn as much as you can about each, or work with a professional that can assist you. This understanding allows you to both prevent these attacks from happening and have a plan of response in the event that they do occur.

Handle Your Business Cyber Security Needs to the Fullest

Your business cyber security will be taken care of when you consider the tips above. No matter what kind of company you run, you’ll need to manage your cybersecurity needs to the fullest.

This attention to detail will help protect your company’s data and keep you secure. Let Ihloom Cybersecurity help you out when you’re looking to manage your cybersecurity and compliance. Take some time to contact us on our site or give us a call at (781) 285-6154.