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If you’re a business owner, you’re no stranger to risks—they’re just part of running a business. However, some risks are more troublesome than others, like the risk of cyberthreats. Companies are big targets for cybercriminals, and a successful cyberattack could devastate your operations. That’s why it’s important to know how to protect your network from cyberattacks.
How To Protect Your Network From Cyberattacks
Whether your company is a pharmaceutical maker or a marketing agency, every industry is vulnerable to cyberattacks. One of the leading reasons why businesses are magnets for cybercrime is because most organizations fail to take the necessary steps to protect their network adequately. Just one cyberattack could result in problems like heavy fines, damage to your reputation, lawsuits, and more.
If you want to avoid experiencing these consequences, the best action you can take is to learn how to protect your network from a cyberattack. If you’re unsure of how to do that—don’t worry— we have you covered. We’ve compiled a list of steps you can follow to improve your cybersecurity threat management.
Understand the Threats You’re Facing
Cyberthreats come in a variety of forms, and the ways they attack are just as diverse. Familiarizing yourself with the cyberattacks your industry commonly sees can help you detect cyberthreats and stop them. Here are just a few of the threats you should be aware of:
- Ransomware: This is a type of cyberattack where the hacker uses malware to encrypt your files, applications, or even operating system (OS). It’s called ransomware because the criminal demands a ransom to decrypt your system. Paying is not recommended because there’s no guarantee of decryption and only encourages the hacker to do it again. Instead of paying, you should work with your managed service provider to restore your data and applications.
- DoS and DDoS: A denial of service (DoS) attack is a malicious attempt to overwhelm your resources with traffic and render your web property unresponsive. A distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack is similar, but differs in that these attacks are launched from previously infected host machines that are controlled by the hacker. You can prevent these types of attacks by knowing your network’s normal traffic patterns and having servers in different data centers.
- Phishing: Phishing is a social engineering tactic that is specifically designed to manipulate and deceive individuals. Looking out for suspicious attachments and links, grammar and spelling errors, and dubious email addresses can help you avoid phishing.
- Password Attack: This is where a hacker steals your password and username through eavesdropping, phishing, or some other method to access your accounts. Creating a complex password and using multi-factor authentication can help prevent a password attack.
- IoT Attacks: IoT devices, like smart speakers and smart watches, are generally less secure than most modern operating systems. Active monitoring, staying on top of updates, and remaining aware of what devices are connected to your network can help you stave off IoT attacks.
Identify Vulnerabilities in Your Network
A great way to protect your network from cyberattacks is to perform what’s known as a vulnerability test. Security gaps can be easy to miss, and if a malicious person discovers a weakness in your infrastructure, they could invade your network without your knowledge. Vulnerability assessments are designed to identify and alert you to any potential exploits.
Vulnerability testing works by analyzing the entirety of your infrastructure for vulnerabilities. This can be done manually or with automated scans that run on a constant schedule. If a vulnerability is found, you can take steps to correct the problem to shrink your attack surface.
Have a Cybersecurity Disaster Recovery Plan
Being proactive goes a long way in protecting your network from cyberattacks. Something you can do right now is create a disaster recovery plan. This is a strategy that’s designed to help your organization minimize the consequences of a cyberattack. To set up a disaster recovery plan, you can talk to an expert, like Arizona Computer Guru.
Talk With Security Experts
If your air conditioning suddenly stopped working, would you try to fix it yourself? More likely, you would hire an expert to handle the problem because they know what they’re doing. The same thought process should be applied to your cybersecurity.
Managed IT providers specialize in cybersecurity solutions and can provide the advice you need to enhance your protection. For example, Arizona Computer Guru offers consulting services to give you the cybersecurity advice you need. In addition to consultation, we offer other services that proactively fight against security breaches.
Keep Your Systems Updated
Cyberthreats are always evolving to slip through your firewalls. Because of the persistence of these threats, developers are constantly working to close known security gaps through patches. When a new patch arrives, you should always go through the update as soon as possible. It’s recommended that you regularly check for newly released patches.
Create Robust Passwords
Creating strong passwords can be a hassle, but it’s necessary for the protection of the various accounts you work with throughout the day. Too often, employees rely on weak or reused passwords because they’re easy to remember. However, weak or reused passwords are easy for hackers to crack. A good solution to this would be to invest in a password management tool. These tools take the hassle out of password creation by creating strong passwords and storing them for you.
Let Us Protect Your Network From Cyberattacks
Arizona Computer Guru is a leading provider of IT services in Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona. We leverage our expertise to ensure your company gets the IT solutions it needs to run smoothly. Schedule a free consultation with us today to learn how we could improve your operations.