Video: Cybersecurity Tips for Small Businesses

small business owners are constantly working to grow their companies while protecting them from threats that can damage their brand but are you doing enough to safeguard against attackers online looking to steal your data find out in this video what's up everybody welcome back to ecurity Planet your go-to channel for all things cyber security I'm your host Davin Jackson and in today's video we're going to take a look at the world of small businesses and their somewhat complicated relationship with cyber security after today you'll be equipped with the tools to help you stay secure on your entrepreneurial Journey before we get into it please make sure to subscribe to the channel and click the bell for notifications so you can be updated when we upload new videos so let's get into it small businesses are the Cornerstone of our economy driving Innovation and creating jobs however with the growing threat of cyber attacks these businesses face unique challenges in balancing security ease of use and the budget for it all is on the top of that list this is known as the security versus convenience dilemma which can be challenging and at times extremely frustrating for businesses and cyber Security Professionals it involves finding the right balance between these two critical factors as both a small business owner and a cyber security professional I've seen firsthand how delicate this balance can be and how significantly it can impact the business's success and I also have unique insight to the challenges facing ing both sides one major hurdle that both small business owners and cyber Security Professionals face is balancing that security versus convenience you see the more secure something is the less convenient the process is to access it and vice versa the more convenient the less secure this is especially true with small businesses where resources and time are often limited from the small business owner perspective I know how building out your business can be a labor of love but it can also be time and money consuming and sometimes s you need to cut a few Corners until you get rolling and then you can afford to do better however as a cybercity professional and ethical hacker I also see how these Cuts can also make you vulnerable to cyber attacks and data breaches so how do we find Common Ground well first we need to address one major issue and that's the notion that your business is too small to be targeted but the reality is that small businesses are prime targets for attackers because they're less likely to have the same robust security measures that large corporations have in place in other words attackers would rather hack a few mom and pop coffee shops than a Starbucks or Duncan because they're more likely to get away with it studies show that nearly 60% of small business owners believe that they're not at risk and 92% don't even have a security budget however the reality is that 46% of all cyber attacks are aimed at small businesses and according to the world economic Forum studies indicate that 95% of cyber security issues stem from human error this means that most breaches are not caused by some sophisticated attack or technical exploit but rather by factors such as weak passwords or users being tricked by fishing emails and clicking on malicious links and the consequences of a Cyber attack can be devastating when a business is breached they can lose financial income they can lose sensitive data become non-compliant with regulations and be penalized with fines and other disciplinary actions and not to mention reputational damage and for many small businesses one single attack can be enough to put you out of business for good recent data shows that 60% of small businesses have no choice but to close down 6 months after an attack on average now hold on I don't want you to think that All Is Lost or start having second thoughts about going into business you worked way too hard to get your business running and you aren't going to quit on your dreams and I also understand that you may not have the security budget of a large corporation to protect yourself so what can you do while it may seem like a daunting task protecting your small business from cyber attacks doesn't have to break the bank here are a few tips to help you enhance your security without breaking your wallet or sacrificing convenience first Implement basic network security something like a basic network setup with a firewall and strong Wi-Fi security can significantly reduce your risk from outside attacks internally make sure that admin level access is only used temporarily and on an as needed base basis be sure to limit your employees access to sensitive data and only grant them with enough permissions to complete their daily tasks number two regular software updates make sure to keep your operating systems and your software up to date to patch all vulnerabilities and security holes also routinely check your computers and devices for programs and applications that you aren't using and uninstall them people tend to forget to update apps and programs that they don't regularly use leaving them vulnerable for attackers looking for a way to get in number three data backups regularly backup your important data to a secure location this will allow you to quickly recover from any major issue and protect you from ransomware attacks you may also want to consider using cloud-based solutions that offer affordable and scalable data backups and protection number four and I know you've heard this before use strong passwords and multiactor authentication always and I mean always use strong and unique passwords for your businesses and personal computers in devices if you need help creating a password use a password manager also don't forget to implement multiactor authentication for added Security check out this video on our channel for more information on how to create strong passwords using a password manager number five we have employee training like I mentioned earlier most attacks are due to human error so it's imperative that we find new and engaging ways to educate our employees about fishing scams social engineering tactics and best practices for data security here's a bonus tip if you do have some extra money in your budget for security consider exploring a managed security service provider or mssp they offer various Security Solutions as a service which can relieve some of the stress from your responsibilities and also free up your time to focus on other important tasks for your business while balancing security and convenience can be challenging it's essential for the long-term success of all businesses big and small to implement these cost- effective security measures with these tips you can protect your assets and significantly mitigate the risk of cyber attacks so do we miss any security tips let us know some of your go-to cyber security strategies for your small business in the comment section below and for more top cyber security tips news Trends and Analysis send straight to your inbox subscribe to cyber security Insider and like always keep it locked here at ecurity Planet thanks for watching and I'll see you in the next video

This transcript was generated automatically from the video's captions and may contain errors.