Answer:
Cyberattacks on businesses are on the rise and the level of sophistication is ever-changing. While it may be impossible to avoid an attack forever, the risk of having a data security incident can be reduced by following some simple precautionary measures:
- Identify your vulnerable points, both internally and externally. For example, hackers and other bad actors may gain access to your data through vendors, employees, and competitors.
- Make security part of your organizational culture. Educate your employees about the importance of security measures and encourage them to use strong passwords and to change them regularly, lock hardware, and consider privacy risks when using mobile devices and social media.
- Put up a strong firewall and install anti-virus and anti-malware software.
- Encrypt your customer data and digital assets.
- Run periodic backups.
Finally, before you become the victim of a cyberattack, it is important to have a strong response plan with clearly defined roles, responsibilities and steps to follow to recover data, inform clients, and comply with notification requirements of the applicable jurisdictions.
