An increase in ransomware attacks is raising red flags amongst the federal government’s cybersecurity community.
In fact, just recently, the United States Secret Service issued a security alert to American-based businesses, warning that foreign cybercriminals are targeting the millions of employees who have shifted to a work-from-home environment in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dating back to September 2013, however, ransomware is not a new problem to strike the United States.
As these cyber threats continue to grow in complexity and frequency every day, so do the costs associated with them.
In fact, research conducted by Accenture revealed that the average cyber-attack costs a small business nearly $200,000 and, of those who do fall victim, 60% close their doors permanently in six months or less.
These developments have left business owners feeling overwhelmed by cybersecurity.
One simple attack and the business that they’ve worked so hard to build could be shuttered forever. As a business owner myself, that’s intimidating, and I get it.
Fortunately, however, while these threats are terrifying, the good news is that this fear can be met with action. The power to protect their business lies in their hands, and to do so, business owners must employ these 5 steps:
1. Business owners must ensure every device on their network is utilizing a proactive antivirus software.
2. Employees should only be allowed to use remote access when absolutely necessary.
4. Insist that your employees only use their work device for work purposes.
5. You must have strong password protocols.
For a link to the full article, click here.
Steve Niehaus, MBA, CBI
[email protected]
239.565.3171
