2022 should be the year to upgrade and improve your business security systems and this could be your business’s new year resolution. Moreover, it’s time your business grew with the evolving security systems as well.
Business security is a crucial aspect you need to consider. A security breach in your business could lead to malware attacks or data theft, amounting to significant losses for your business. You’ll spend countless time and resources trying to recover what’s lost instead of focusing on growing your business. Hence, read more for a guideline on how to improve your business security this coming year.
1. Invest In Cyber Security
Cyber security aims at safeguarding your digital business functions. Most business operations are being done online with the rise in digitization. Therefore, conducting business through the internet makes your data susceptible to theft or unauthorized access.
Most businesses use Wireless Fidelity (WI-FI) to access the internet. Thus, you must ensure your wi-fi network is well secured by formulating strict policies on password sharing by your employees to outsiders. Safeguarding your wi-fi network prevents and reduces unauthorized access that could lead to a cyberattack in your health or any other sector-based company.
You could also have your IT team train the other team members on setting up strong passwords for their work accounts. Strong passwords prevent the hacking of business accounts for data retrieval. Make sure all the software your company uses, including anti-virus, is regularly updated. Software updates are more often than not accompanied by security feature upgrades.
2. Regulate Access
Reducing the number of people accessing your business’s sensitive data is a sure way of increasing security. Company data exposed to all employees makes it challenging to identify the source of irregularity in case of a breach.
Regulate access by clearly outlining who’s to access the control room of your business and providing special access cards for the sensitive areas of your company.
Consider using identity access management to manage people’s identities. This prevents systems from falling to a breached password and catches mistakes before they become critical errors.
3. Have a Maintenance and a Response Plan
A maintenance plan aims at inspecting and assessing the security systems in your company. This way, any loopholes or potential risks are identified and mitigated to prevent a breach from happening. Consider contracting a security provider who’ll regularly perform security audits and advice your security and IT team accordingly.
You must also ensure you’ve vetted your preferred security provider well before giving them access to your company data. In case of an in-house security upgrade in your company, notify your security provider to monitor any suspicious activity.
On the other hand, a response plan works to provide a clear line of action that your team should take in case of a cyber-attack. Train your workers on the protocol to follow and let them practice it beforehand for better understanding. A response plan also reduces panic among your team during an attack, allowing them to think clearly to counter the attack.
4. Upgrade Your Lock Systems
Gone are the days when you used keys to access a room or your building. Hence, invest in intelligent lock systems that reduce the possibility of a breach due to misplaced keys. For rooms holding sensitive information, including the company’s server room, add an extra access requirement. Have two doors in place, where the first door’s access requires a smart access card and the second door a unique code or pin. You can have the code automatically reset every few minutes to access extra sensitive data.
Lock systems also include the doors and windows of your business. Upgrade the doors to the crucial areas of your company with those made of sturdy materials, such as stainless steel. Include metal grills for your windows for extra protection. All these prevent physical break-ins even with smart lock systems in place.
5. Adopt Appropriate Disposal Procedures
A majority of businesses, including yours, are regularly required to dispose of excess paperwork to clear out the office. How you handle unwanted paperwork is a sensitive issue that you need to consider. Disposing of them normally in the garbage can outside your business isn’t the way to go. With such a disposal system, you have no idea where the rubbish ends. It could end up with your rivals or someone who can use the data to attack your company or perform illegalities.
Hence, consider having your employees shred any documents before they’re thrown out. Alternatively, reduce the use of paperwork in your business and let your employees perform all their duties electronically.
6. Keep In Touch With Technology
As previously stated, technology keeps on advancing. Have your security and IT team be aware of any new technology that can be utilized by your company for its benefit. Assess the viability of the technology with your team and if it will be a worthy investment for your business. Thus, you must have your team properly trained when you invest in a new product in your business.
As you select new technology, ensure it integrates with the existing systems in your company without compromising on security and efficiency. This reduces the possibility of malware attacks due to errors and inadequacies of your workers.
Conclusion
Having a security system in place allows you and your team to continue with other critical aspects of your business without worrying about possible attacks. Even in the event of an attack, your business is ready beforehand to deal with the issue. Consider implementing the various ideas discussed in this article on how you can improve the security of your business this coming 2022.
