As a business owner or executive, you know that growing a company can be like raising children. You want what is best for them and you’re always thinking about what you can do to nurture them along, helping to shape them into the very best they can be. There are so many things to think about – academics, sports, friendships, health, morals, ambitions – it’s hard to know where to put your energies.
The same is true in business. To be successful, all the parts need to be working in harmony. Product, sales, service, accounting, employees, marketing, IT. You may feel like you’re spreading yourself thin at times, but every area deserves your focus and attention. What you may not realize is that cybersecurity should be at the top of the list. Why? Because it boils down to safety. It could all be gone in an instant if you’re not staying safe. In fact, 60% of small and medium-sized businesses go out of business within six months of a cyberattack.1
The good news is that every step you take in the right direction counts. Here are five such measures you should embrace this year, if you haven’t already.
Create a culture of cyber awareness.
What gets talked about gets thought about. Yet in many organizations, cybersecurity is like the ugly stepchild – ignored and unwanted. Rather than wait for a data breach or malware attack to take center stage, embrace a culture of cyber awareness at your company. Train employees and new hires to recognize phishing threats and then regularly talk about cybersecurity at meetings. Hang posters throughout the office. Take advantage of the free resources offered during National Cybersecurity Awareness Month. Get employees involved. Share reports and examples. Reward good behavior.
Secure your networks.
Take some simple advice from the SBA on this one1: Safeguard your internet connection by encrypting information and using a firewall. If you have a Wi-Fi network, make sure it is secure and hidden. To hide your Wi-Fi network, set up your wireless access point or router so it does not broadcast the network name, known as the Service Set Identifier (SSID). Password-protect access to the router. If you have employees working remotely, use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) to allow them to connect to your network securely from out of the office. Implementing Multi-Factor Authentication and Password Protection is also key.
Insist upon open communication for large transactions.
Even with a great email security platform in place, verbal communication needs to be a part of your everyday process. In 2021, nearly $2.4 billion was lost in Business Email Compromise (BEC) scams.1 BEC targets companies and individuals performing transfers of large amounts of money. Acting as company decision-makers or sometimes a large, well-known vendor, hackers instruct key employees to unknowingly initiate fraudulent wire transfers. In every instance, had the employee had a face-to-face conversation with the company CEO, or whoever seems to be initiating the process, they would have discovered it all to be a hoax.
Implement email encryption.
If your company deals with sensitive data of any kind, email encryption will help you better secure it. INKY leverages cutting-edge 256-bit encryption that is so simple to use that you only need to add the word [encrypt] to the subject line of your email.
Conduct monthly cybersecurity audits.
This can be as easy as structuring a report for your IT department to deliver every month. If you have the right email security platform, this can be done in no time. INKY’s Reporting and Visualization Tool gives you a complete picture of the threats that could compromise your organization. See what types of phishing emails your employees are encountering or delete them before they even reach an employee’s inbox. Gain insight into everything from VIP impersonation threats to a list of the most targeted users. INKY has a slew of reports available that you can pull on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
This is just a short list of things you can do to make your organization safer and more cyber-savvy. You can add on several other layers including protecting mobile devices, monitoring outbound and internal emails, considering advanced attachment analysis, and more. With every step you take, you’ll better protect your company from the myriad of phishing threats that could devastate your company.
INKY provides the most comprehensive malware and email phishing protection available and is the only behavioral email security platform. That means that not only does INKY block phishing attempts, it also coaches users to make safe decisions when it comes to the security of their email. And, by signaling suspicious behaviors with interactive email banners, INKY guides users to take safe action on any device or email client. Installation is simple too. INKY is compatible with just about every email platform and our installation team has most customers are up and running in under an hour – even with remote employees. Schedule a demo or inquire today.
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INKY is an award-winning, behavioral email security platform that blocks phishing threats, prevents data leaks, and coaches users to make smart decisions. Like a cybersecurity coach, INKY signals suspicious behaviors with interactive email banners that guide users to take safe action on any device or email client. IT teams don’t face the burden of filtering every email themselves or maintaining multiple systems. Through powerful technology and intuitive user engagement, INKY keeps phishers out for good. Learn why so many companies trust the security of their email to INKY. Request an online demonstration today.
1Source: https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/manage-your-business/strengthen-your-cybersecurity
https://www.ic3.gov/Media/PDF/AnnualReport/2021_IC3Report.pdf