Security is of the utmost importance if your organization handles sensitive client information, which is why you should know how to protect your business data. Unfortunately, data breaches are still rampant, causing significant damage to both enterprises and customers.
The latest figures indicate that the average data breach worldwide cost businesses $4.35 million, an increase of 2.6% from the previous year’s $4.24 million. An average of 270 cyber attacks per company also occurred in 2021. Amid these occurrences, organizations actively look for practical solutions to keep clients’ sensitive data safe.
This article will discuss actionable ways to safeguard sensitive client information and the significance of business data protection in today’s digital world.
Why is data security important for businesses?
While technological advancements have made data sharing easier, hackers and cybercriminals also use sophisticated tools to carry out attacks and data breaches. As such, knowing how to protect your business data is paramount to keeping your company’s reputation intact.
Here are some of the most important reasons you must prioritize data security.
Financial losses
Once news of a data breach leaks out to the public, it can cause your stock price to drop and your sales to plummet. Moreover, your company will have to deal with financial fallout like lawsuits, cybersecurity analyst fees, and customer renumerations should the crisis escalate.
Loss of business confidence
Apart from massive financial loss, the lack of proper data security measures can also affect your organization’s overall reputation. Consumers expect companies to keep their sensitive information safe, given how most business transactions now happen online.
Even if a particular data breach doesn’t directly affect your customers, incidents of this nature can cause the public to view your company as unreliable.
The perception brought by a data breach episode can discourage consumers and even current and potential partners from conducting business with your organization, thus impacting your bottom line.
Compliance and regulation issues
Data breaches can cause legal repercussions for your company. Your organization may face litigation and an ensuing investigation, with law enforcement and governing bodies scrutinizing the cause of the data breach, who the perpetrators are, and even your level of liability and blame.
Big or small, no company is exempt from facing legal consequences. In 2021, the popular online retailer and cloud service provider Amazon faced a fine of $877 million for breaching the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
7 Ways to Protect Your Business Data and Information
It’s in your best interest to ensure everyone in your organization knows how to protect your business data. Here are ways to help you achieve that goal.
1. Inform employees of cybersecurity threats
A lack of proper knowledge plays a significant role in data breach incidents. Per reports, 82% of data breach cases involve human error.
To mitigate data breaches, your employees must know the common cyber security threats they might face like fake emails, ransomware, phishing scams, etc.
It’s also crucial to conduct regular training to instill and reinforce cybersecurity best practices among your employees. A workforce with the necessary information can identify and avoid cybersecurity threats so they don’t fall victim to them.
2. Manage data authorizations and privileges
Not all employees need access to company data. Here, data access restrictions are crucial to protecting your business against internal breaches. Only give authorized individuals specific credentials to access the files or resources they need to conduct their jobs.
3. Back up data regularly
It’s hard to predict when a data breach might happen. Best to be vigilant by regularly creating data backups. A dedicated backup system ensures you always have a copy of essential files if a data breach causes mass file deletion. You may ask your IT team to develop and maintain an automated remote backup system to accomplish this.
4. Secure devices and networks with essential cyber hygiene software
Prevention is the best defense against a potential data breach, and installing essential cyber hygiene software can help secure your devices and networks from the prying hands of cybercriminals. Basic cyber hygiene involves installing anti-virus programs, firewall utilization, and regularly cleaning your hard drives via reformatting.
Experts recommend installing updates and patches for your operating system when available so cybercriminals can’t exploit vulnerabilities.
5. Remove access privileges of ex-employees
You can better quell your concerns regarding how to protect your business data by covering all the bases. When an employee leaves or resigns from the company, ensure that you remove their access to the company network or system. Access privilege removal includes retrieving ID badges, changing login credentials, and updating database restrictions.
6. Perform penetration tests regularly
A penetration test is a series of assessments to evaluate your system’s security posture by identifying and exploiting the vulnerabilities in your system. Regular penetration tests are crucial to business data and information security, as it helps your IT personnel learn the blind spots in your cybersecurity infrastructure and patch them accordingly.
7. Partner with expert companies that specialize in security
If you’ve determined that your company’s security requirements are too much for your internal IT team to accommodate, consider enlisting the help of expert security companies. You can tap their services to gain more insights on how to protect your business data and determine the best tools for managing internal and external information.
Organizations like Yondu employ data security experts while providing relevant, scalable, and innovative solutions that keep sensitive business data safe.
Prioritizing Data Security
For the most part, technological advancements have made everyday processes more manageable. Unfortunately, technology also enables individuals with ill intent to carry out fraudulent acts and steal data for personal gain.
While data breaches are difficult to stop, these tips are valuable in combating and preventing attacks against your company’s and customers’ sensitive information.
Yondu’s expertise in providing security solutions makes it your reliable partner in the digital space. Schedule a consultation today with our team.
It’s in your best interest to ensure everyone in your organization knows how to protect your business data. Here are ways to help you achieve that goal.
1. Inform employees of cybersecurity threats
A lack of proper knowledge plays a significant role in data breach incidents. Per reports, 82% of data breach cases involve human error.
To mitigate data breaches, your employees must know the common cyber security threats they might face like fake emails, ransomware, phishing scams, etc.
It’s also crucial to conduct regular training to instill and reinforce cybersecurity best practices among your employees. A workforce with the necessary information can identify and avoid cybersecurity threats so they don’t fall victim to them.
2. Manage data authorizations and privileges
Not all employees need access to company data. Here, data access restrictions are crucial to protecting your business against internal breaches. Only give authorized individuals specific credentials to access the files or resources they need to conduct their jobs.
3. Back up data regularly
It’s hard to predict when a data breach might happen. Best to be vigilant by regularly creating data backups. A dedicated backup system ensures you always have a copy of essential files if a data breach causes mass file deletion. You may ask your IT team to develop and maintain an automated remote backup system to accomplish this.
4. Secure devices and networks with essential cyber hygiene software
Prevention is the best defense against a potential data breach, and installing essential cyber hygiene software can help secure your devices and networks from the prying hands of cybercriminals. Basic cyber hygiene involves installing anti-virus programs, firewall utilization, and regularly cleaning your hard drives via reformatting.
Experts recommend installing updates and patches for your operating system when available so cybercriminals can’t exploit vulnerabilities.
5. Remove access privileges of ex-employees
You can better quell your concerns regarding how to protect your business data by covering all the bases. When an employee leaves or resigns from the company, ensure that you remove their access to the company network or system. Access privilege removal includes retrieving ID badges, changing login credentials, and updating database restrictions.
6. Perform penetration tests regularly
A penetration test is a series of assessments to evaluate your system’s security posture by identifying and exploiting the vulnerabilities in your system. Regular penetration tests are crucial to business data and information security, as it helps your IT personnel learn the blind spots in your cybersecurity infrastructure and patch them accordingly.
7. Partner with expert companies that specialize in security
If you’ve determined that your company’s security requirements are too much for your internal IT team to accommodate, consider enlisting the help of expert security companies. You can tap their services to gain more insights on how to protect your business data and determine the best tools for managing internal and external information.
Organizations like Yondu employ data security experts while providing relevant, scalable, and innovative solutions that keep sensitive business data safe.
Prioritizing Data Security
For the most part, technological advancements have made everyday processes more manageable. Unfortunately, technology also enables individuals with ill intent to carry out fraudulent acts and steal data for personal gain.
While data breaches are difficult to stop, these tips are valuable in combating and preventing attacks against your company’s and customers’ sensitive information.
Yondu’s expertise in providing security solutions makes it your reliable partner in the digital space. Schedule a consultation today with our team.
