What do you do when there’s a security breach? If you’re like most people, your response probably involves at least one of the following: 1) Trying to fix it yourself 2) Doing nothing because you think the problem won’t happen again or 3) Telling someone who isn’t tech-savvy about the problem, hoping they can help out. None of these are bad responses in the moment, but all of them are bad long-term strategies because they don’t actually address the root of the problem — and that can leave your business vulnerable in the future.
1) Use Two-Factor Authentication
One of most commonly cited ways to secure your business is by utilizing two-factor authentication (2FA). 2FA uses something you know, like a password, and something you have—in other words, your phone—to confirm identity. While there are many different 2FA methods out there, some offer better security than others. If you don’t already use 2FA to secure your online accounts and personal data, it’s worth giving it a try on all of your most important accounts. It only takes a few minutes to set up and can save you from major headaches down the road. The best part? Most 2FA options are free!
The Top 5 Tips for Securing Your Business: 1) Use Two-Factor Authentication: One of most commonly cited ways to secure your business is by utilizing two-factor authentication (2FA). 2FA uses something you know, like a password, and something you have—in other words, your phone—to confirm identity. While there are many different 2FA methods out there, some offer better security than others. If you don’t already use 2FA to secure your online accounts and personal data, it’s worth giving it a try on all of your most important accounts.
2) Set Strong Passwords
Each of your social media and email accounts is a potential entry point for hackers. A strong password—combining upper- and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols in a word or phrase that’s easy to remember—can help secure your business from cyber-criminals. Consider using a password manager like 1Password or LastPass to keep track of all your passwords across multiple accounts. Strong passwords aren’t just good for security—they can also help with SEO; invisible text like uppercase letters helps search engines crawl through long webpages. As an added bonus, difficult passwords are much harder to crack than easy ones!
3) Change Logins Regularly
There is nothing more important than changing passwords regularly. If an attacker somehow gains access to your account, you don’t want them to be able to use that access for long. Because most people reuse passwords across different services, changing one password means taking a few moments to change everything else. It may seem like extra work, but it could save your business from some serious damage in the long run.
4) Consider Using a Password Manager
A password manager (i.e., LastPass, 1Password) is a way to store all of your passwords in one place. This may seem like overkill—how could you possibly have that many passwords? But as time goes on, it’s likely that you’ll accumulate dozens of logins for various accounts: your email account, your social networks, maybe even a few online shopping sites. That’s a lot of potential access points if someone were to get their hands on just one password! A password manager is also convenient because it stores these login credentials behind a master login and can autofill forms when logging into a site or app using saved data.
5) Install Anti-Virus Software
It might be a pain, but anti-virus software is one of your best bets for keeping you and your business safe from hackers and other malicious users. Set it up on all your devices—especially if you store sensitive data on them. Hackers will try to steal passwords, financial information, credit card numbers, and more by piggybacking off of your device. The easiest way to keep them out? Install anti-virus software. Do it once and do it right; depending on what type of computer you have (mac or PC), there are plenty of options for keeping everything secure.
