On average, UK businesses lose around £30 billion every year as a result of cyber crime. Unfortunately, the risks are only getting greater and more prominent. Now is the time for you to act. Here are four vital tips for securing your SME in an online world.

Identify All Threats

“Cyber Risk Reviews must consider your IT in your facilities such as AirCon, Lifts, Doors, Alarms & CCTV, not just networks” – Cevn Vibert, Industrial Cyber Security Advisory Director at Vibert Solutions.

How secure are you systems? A cyber security audit is a good place to start. Explore all threats to your business, both internal and external.

It’s important to keep up-to-date with the latest cyber threats; this will help you mitigate risks before becoming a victim.

Scrutinize your company’s current procedures and ask yourself some important questions:

  • Is your data regularly backed up?
  • Are your devices protected?
  • Is your network protected from malware and viruses?
  • Do your employees know how to handle phishing attacks?
  • How effective is your password policy?
  • Do your employees implement your security policy effectively?

Make Cyber Security a Business Priority

“Don’t wait for an incident to occur, act now to protect the network and assets within it. Failure to do so can have significant impacts financially and impact the reputation of an organisation to a degree which they may not recover from” – Dan Driver, Head of Perception at Chemring Technology Solutions.

Once the risk assessment stage is complete, it’s time to build a business cyber security policy. Don’t underestimate the importance of communicating this effectively to your staff, contractors and supply chain.

Here are a few areas that should be covered in your risk management policy:

  • Data shared with third parties should be protected from unauthorised access, modification or deletion
  • Suppliers and contractors should (Read more...)