Cyber security is a serious problem. The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) latest figures show 42 % of members have been a victim of cyber crime in the last 12 months!

Costing an average of £3,000 per business.

Cyber security breaches cost the UK economy £5.26bn per year. And the time taken for an small or medium sized business to recover from a breach is now estimated as being more than 2 days.

4 Key steps to making you more Cyber Secure

There are a number of actions that can improve your cyber security and protecting your business online. As a minimum we recommend the following 4.

Basic Password Security

Change your password regularly and use a different password for each account. Use combinations of letters, numbers and special characters such as: ZxLa39?9cc3f instead of ‘qwerty1234’. If you google ‘top 25 popular passwords’ and your current password is on the list, then change it. Now.

Firewall and Router Security

Did you change the default password on the firewall and router ? It’s a common way for hackers to gain access to your data.

Patches and software updates

Have you applied all the patches (you know, that annoying message that always pops up just when you’re in the middle of doing something really important?). These are vital for maintaining security and should be installed as soon as possible. Don’t use out of support software. This is software that the developers are no longer actively maintaining. Staying current is key.

Use a virus checker

Seriously dip your hand in your pocket and pay the price, it’s a worthy investment in getting a good one. Ensure that your virus checker is up to date as well. Using an out of date virus checker to validate your systems won’t protect you from the latest virus that are circulating. You also need to ensure that check all of your devices (Laptops, smart phones and tablets) are secure.

But if you really want peace of mind….

The Essentials of Cyber Security

Basic security such as those described above will prevent your business from becoming an easy target. But to really protect yourself, and give your suppliers and customers peace of mind you should adopt a recognised standard such as ISO27001 or Cyber Essentials.

For example, implementing Cyber Essentials has helped businesses from 100’s of employees to one man companies become more secure. It is part of the UK’s National Cyber Security Programme and has been developed in consultation with Industry. It’s suitable for organisations of any size or sector, including schools, universities and the not-for-profit sector.

It focuses on 5 key areas :

Boundary firewalls and internet gateways
Secure configuration
Access control
Malware protection
Patch management

Don’t understand what these are and the impact it could have on your business?

Your not alone. Whilst many companies have implemented some steps to protect their business from threat, according to the FSB, two thirds (66%) have been a victim of cyber crime in the last two years. Only 2% of businesses have a recognised standard in place such as ISO27001 or Cyber Essentials in place. With so many businesses falling victim to cyber crime this is a worrying statistic and avoidable as by taking some cost effective, simple steps you can protect your business and reduce the risk of your organisation becoming another statistic..