Archives - Small Business


Initiate employee training

While conservative estimates say that just under 80% of data breaches stem from employee mistakes, more liberal studies place that figure in the upper 90 percentile. By training your employees on best practices for data security, you can significantly reduce the risk of data breaches within your organization. Furthermore, as the prevalence and impact of […]

Audit third-party vendors

Thoroughly assess the cybersecurity practices of third-party vendors that provide software or services to your organization. Specifically, evaluate their security controls, data handling practices and compliance with industry standards and regulations. Furthermore, conduct periodic audits and vendor risk assessments to minimize potential security vulnerabilities introduced through external partnerships. Ensuring the security of third-party relationships is […]

Monitor user account activity

Vigilant user account activity oversight facilitates identifying and mitigating potential security threats. This is particularly important for accounts with elevated privileges with sensitive information access. Consider implementing user and entity behavior analytics (UEBA) tools that continuously monitor and analyze user actions and system behavior more generally. These tools work to detect anomalies indicative of security […]

Establish a clear incident response plan

Prepare your organization for potential security incidents by creating a clear, comprehensive incident response plan. This plan should outline clear roles and responsibilities, escalation procedures, communication strategies and detailed steps to follow in the event of a breach. Consider conducting regular drills and tabletop exercises to ensure that your team is well-prepared to react swiftly […]

Conduct employee training and phishing simulations

You can strengthen your organization’s cybersecurity defenses by investing in comprehensive employee training programs and conducting regular phishing simulations. Employee training should encompass threat awareness, safe email practices and the ability to recognize and thwart common social engineering tactics. Simulated phishing exercises gauge your team’s readiness and response to phishing attempts, allowing you to tailor […]

Implement a web application firewall (WAF)

For businesses, look to elevate the security of your web applications by deploying a web application firewall (WAF). This defense layer inspects all incoming HTTP/HTTPS requests and responses, meticulously filtering out malicious traffic including SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS) and various application-layer attacks. By adopting a WAF, you fortify your web services against a spectrum […]