Running an online business is a popular way to make money in 2020, particularly since the coronavirus pandemic has pushed even more people towards using the internet for as many of their needs as possible.
It’s fair to say that running an online business is more convenient in many ways and comes with many advantages from being able to work anywhere in the world to be able to operate at lower costs.
However, there are some potential pitfalls, one of the biggest being the cyber security threat.
With that in mind, here are some things you can do to keep your online business safe now and in the future:
Hire a great IT team
Having a dedicated team of IT professionals who know the digital world inside out is your first defense against cyberattacks.
If you can’t afford to have one on staff permanently, there are many companies that offer dedicated network support as and when you need it.
Use them and make sure that you’re taking IT seriously.
Backup regularly
Making regular backups of everything from the data your store to the key systems you use to operate your online business is so important because it will ensure that, even if an attack does happen, your business won’t have to go offline or end up losing everything and have to start again from scratch.
Ideally, copies should be kept in a secure off-site location for the most protection.
Install updates
It goes without saying that you should be running all of the latest anti-virus software and securities available to your company, but these will only work effectively against threats if you are sure to apply any new patched and updates as soon as they are made available.
Most software packages allow you to set systems to auto-update, so do that and you shouldn’t have to worry.
Limit access
You may trust your employees implicitly, but it’s still sensible to limit who has access to any given area of your IT system to only those people who really need to have access.
After all, the fewer people who have the details, the less chance there is of them leaking out and being used for nefarious purposes.
Use strong passwords
Passwords should be a random string of letters, numbers, and symbols. They should also be changed regularly for best security practice, and you may also want to think about implementing two-factor authentication for an even higher level of safety.
Encrypt everything
Okay, so maybe you don’t need to encrypt everything, but anything that contains any sensitive or personal data at all should ideally be encrypted, and this included emails that contain passwords or other sensitive data.
Don’t click on links
You should make it really plain to your employees that they should not be clicking on any links using work IT equipment that has not come from an official source, and even then, if the link looks dodgy in any way, they should think twice about doing so without checking with the sender.
Stay safe!
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