Three Ways to Protect Your Company from Rising Cyberattacks

Cyberattacks

The rising cyberattacks have pushed the need for cybersecurity awareness

We live in a digital world where we deal with a wide range of cyber risks and threats. Most cases of data breaches suggest that businesses of all types and sizes are at risk of a cyberattack anytime and anyplace. According to Trend Micro’s biannual Cyber Risk Index (CRI) report, 86 percent of companies surveyed said they may suffer a data breach in the next 12 months. The report also highlighted the top four data types at the highest risk of loss: financial information, business communication (email), consumer data, and analytics (data models). These data types could dramatically affect the health of an organization.

Here are the three steps that can protect your company against cyberattacks.

  • Lock your computer

Manually locking your computer is the primary step of cybersecurity. There’s no real reason to justify leaving your work devices unattended and unlocked. Always log out or lock your computer even if you are stepping away for a minute. This step will prevent data leaks to unauthorized users. In addition to locking your computer, always change your password every three months.

  • Encrypt all the data

Data encryption is one of the most common and effective steps organizations implement when it comes to cybercrimes. It secures the transmitted and stored data on computer systems or the cloud. The process of encryption converts the readable data into an unreadable or encoded format. Only the person who holds the secret key can decrypt or access the data. Fortunately, there are various free & paid encryption software tools online to protect your data from cybercriminals. Some encryption software tools are free for a limited time, while some are always free with limited features. Examples of free encryption software tools are VeraCrypt, Folder Lock, AxCrypt, BitLocker.

  • Use a password manager

To date, the password remains the most common and widely used authentication method. Remembering passwords for multiple accounts can be challenging and frustrating. This is where a password manager can come in handy. A password manager software typically saves, generates and manages passwords for multiple accounts. It not only helps in creating unique and robust passwords, but also protects users from phishing attacks. Many password managers pop up a warning when a user falls for a phishing email or link. Therefore, opting for a good password manager is a must in a current scenario where cyber threats are rising. The good news is that there are some password managers available online for free. Here are few examples: LastPass, Myki, LogMeOnce, Bitwarden.

Now that you know all the basics of cybersecurity, you can have a safe internet browsing experience. But you may ask, why is this important?

Amazon & T-Mobile: the brunt of a data breach

Despite security measures, many organizations experience security threats. Recently, the American telecom giant T-Mobile bore the brunt of a massive data breach. Last week, T-Mobile announced that hackers had compromised the data of about 50 million users. The company encouraged its customers to change their PINs and password proactively. T-Mobile discovered the breach when hackers posted the stolen database on an online forum. To combat future cybercrimes, T-Mobile is offering free McAfee’s ID Theft Protection Service for two years to those impacted by the latest breach.

Even e-commerce company Amazon could not save its customers from cybercrime. According to an internal document obtained by Motherboard, Amazon has found four cases where its security team identified four incidents of data theft. “We have a security gap as we don’t have a reliable mechanism for verifying that users are who they claim they are,” Amazon states in the document.

As a result, Amazon is planning to monitor employees’ keystrokes and mouseclicks to prevent data leaks. It is considering to opt a software called BehavioSec. The biometrics software protects human-digital identities by understanding how they uniquely type and swipe across the ever-changing devices.

Amazon is doing its every bit to secure its data.

Header image courtesy of Unsplash

SHARE THIS STORY

Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on linkedin
Share on email

RELATED POSTS

Interactive Learning with Augmented Reality

Interactive Learning with Augmented Reality: Applications, Benefits and Challenges

Ever wondered what it would be like if your textbooks could talk, if the illustrations in your lessons could come to life, or if you could step into history rather than just read about it? Welcome to the world of augmented reality (AR) in education! Like a magic wand, AR can turn the abstract into tangible and the mundane into extraordinary, unfolding boundless educational possibilities.

How AI Threatens Your Password Security

Unlocking the Dangers: How AI Threatens Your Password Security

You may have heard of artificial intelligence (AI) technology’s many cool capabilities, such as assisting doctors or predicting the weather. However, there is something not-so-cool we need to discuss: AI could make our passwords less safe, which is concerning.

What Does Gen-Z Want in a Career

What Does Gen-Z Want in a Career?

Most managers feel that Gen-Z is “difficult to work with”, entitled and easily offended. The prevalent notion is that this generation is prone to distraction, lacks tech skills and is deficient in productivity and motivation. They want to butt heads, have their say and not listen. Harsh, yes. These studies perhaps ignore that most of the Gen-Z workforce graduated and entered the workforce during COVID-19.

Beyond-Pink-and-Blue

Beyond Pink and Blue: The Movement Towards Gender-Inclusive Toys

Before gifting that pink kitchen set for a girl or the transformer for a boy, pause for a moment. Historically, the toy industry has thrived on perpetuating gender stereotypes. As the French essayist and critic, Roland Barthes, expressed, toys are essentially a “microcosm of the adult world”, reflecting societal views.