5 Cyber-Security Best Practices For Small Businesses

Now that the world’s truly a global village, businesses can access larger markets regardless of one’s location and size. But with improved connectivity comes more serious security risks. Every organization that’s connected to the internet is now in the crosshairs of potential hackers. Fortunately, there are some simple steps you can take to shield your business from cyberattacks.

Keep Your Systems Up-to-date

The older your systems are, the more familiar that hackers are with its weaknesses. So be sure to oblige the next time you see an update pop-up reminder. Everything from your content management system to themes and plugins should have the latest security patches available.

It goes without saying that up-to-date software runs better on new hardware. Upgrades can be costly here, but at least make sure your systems are modern enough to support your apps. The last thing you want is to be locked out of crucial updates simply because your hardware’s too old.

Secure your Wi-Fi Networks

Every Wi-Fi network in the workplace should be secured with solid login credentials and encryption standards. Your wireless access points should also be set up to “hide” the networks, or keep the service set identifiers (SSIDs) out of view for potential hackers. Most importantly, make sure that these networks are isolated from the rest of your systems.

Set up a Web Application Firewall

Think of this as your first line of defense against distributed DDoS protection Costa Rica. A web application firewall sits between your website and the outside world, analyzing incoming traffic and blocking malicious agents. A good WAF will also feature a CDN, or content delivery network.

CDNs complement your primary servers by caching your site’s primary assets around the world. This not only beefs up your DDoS protection Costa Rica, it’ll also get your content closer to end users, thus minimizing latency.

Enforce Safe Passwords

Everyone knows what makes a safe password by now, but few people are diligent enough to strengthen theirs. Correspondingly, a 2016 study indicated that 60% breaches occur due to weak or stolen passwords. Being strict with your password policies is the only way to avoid becoming part of the statistic. Every password to your organization’s system should:

• Be 20 characters long at the very least
• Have a mix of numbers, symbols, as well as upper- and lower-case letters.
• Not contain any dictionary words, or names of people/places.
• Be updated every 30 days, and never be re-used
• Never be written down

Educate Your Staff

If your employees aren’t aware of the whys and hows of cybersecurity, that could very well be the weakest link in your chain. It’s important that you establish a set of security principles and policies, along with penalties for those who fail to heed. Enlighten every member of your workforce on the same, and have them formally acknowledge that they’re liable to being held responsible for their actions.