Why is cybersecurity so important in SMEs? Even if you have a small business, is it necessary to invest in web security? What can happen if I don’t take care of my business’s security?
Surely if you have a website for your company you have asked yourself some of these questions on more than one occasion. Large companies are aware of the importance of web security and are investing more and more in it. But what about small businesses or SMEs?
The perception of danger in smaller businesses is very low and, on many occasions, almost non-existent. Considering that SMEs make up almost the entire business fabric in Spain (99.88% according to INE data), it is not surprising that most cyber attacks are aimed at smaller companies. In fact, it is estimated that 70% of cyber attacks in 2015 were on small and medium-sized businesses.
How can I protect my SME from a cyber attack?
Having an antivirus installed on your company’s computers is no longer enough. If you want to protect your company’s information and your customers, there are some security measures or recommendations that you should take into account:
1) Information storage
Your company’s information and data are one of your business’s main assets, and as such you must have them saved and completely safe.
In this sense, using a quality hosting plan for your website is essential. Get a hosting plan that has preconfigured security measures such as, for example, security measures against brute force attacks or DDoS attacks and that has a monitoring team that monitors your service 24 hours a day.
In addition, a plan like Website Backup makes backups of your site to keep all your information and your work always safe. Remember that hackers never sleep and any website, no matter how small, can be the victim of a hack.
2) Secure software and applications
Another crucial cybersecurity measure in SMEs is to have legitimate software and applications, that is, acquired under license. Some pirated programs or applications may contain malicious code that damages the equipment and puts your business and customer information at risk.
Also, remember how important it is to keep software like WordPress always updated. Any security hole can be used by hackers for malicious purposes.
3) Cloud services
Storing your work or your company’s information in the cloud is a good way to ensure that it will always be available and safe from any sudden failure that may put your computer in quarantine.
A service like Office 365 can be the solution you are looking for. In addition to having 1 TB of space in OneDrive, you make sure you have all the information and all your work always at hand and completely synchronized.
4) Watch out for phishing
Phishing can become one of the main threats to the security of your SME.
This type of cyber attack is becoming more and more common and its objective is mainly based on obtaining confidential information such as passwords, personal data or payment information.
How do they get it? Phishers are able to impersonate the identity of a well-known or reputable company by sending emails, mainly. In these shipments, phishers request the information they are interested in using the image of the company in question, making it very difficult for a user to identify the legitimacy of that email.
One of the precautions you should take when you receive an email of this type is to make sure of its origin. What is the domain from which it is sent? What URL does the email redirect you to? Do you have an account in this company? If you have doubts, it is best to access the website of said company directly or consult with them if it is necessary to perform any action on your website.
5) Training
Another aspect that we cannot forget is the importance of cybersecurity training when you have an SME. The best way to avoid endangering your business information is to know what dangers exist.
SME investment in cybersecurity
Hackers do not discriminate. It doesn’t matter if you have a fashion blog, a cooking blog or a large ecommerce; your website and your business can be the victim of an attack.
But how to prevent it? There are security measures that will help you mitigate these attacks or maintain a more secure infrastructure, but for this it is necessary to invest resources.
Do you know what’s worse? Not all SMEs are aware of the importance of web security, so in many cases they have no budget allocated for it. “I have a very small company, who would be interested in attacking it?” It is a very common thought among SME owners.
To give you an idea of the scope or damage that a cyber attack can cause to a company is that, according to Randed, the average direct cost that each attack entails to a company is €35,000. In addition, most of these attacks are carried out on SMEs. In view of these data, do you think that investment in cybersecurity should be increased?
Did you know that 60% of European SMEs that are victims of a cyber attack disappear in the following six months? Source: Ponemon Institute & Kaspersky.
Really the ignorance and complexity of ICTs pose a real challenge for SME owners. However, investment in security is playing an increasingly crucial role in the survival of many companies.
Conclusion
It is necessary for SMEs to know the importance of cybersecurity. Not only is the survival of your business at stake, but also the security of your customers.
