With never-ending competition, it is nearly impossible for businesses to grow and sustain themselves without having an online appearance on the internet. Whether it’s a website or a page on social media, businesses have to connect with their customers online to reply to their queries, sell them products, and more. 

However, when such a magical door opens and lets you connect with millions of people, some intruders cash on the opportunity by breaching through that door. 

Yes, we are talking about cyber criminals who hack into business systems and steal personal and sensitive data simply for money. According to research, 70 percent of businesses worldwide were victims of ransomware.

For this reason, before taking business online, you need to know the ways of business protection. 

Well, what are those ways? Let's find out!

8 Ways To Protect Your Online Business

 

• Backup your Data

Cybercriminals use malicious software such as viruses, worms, and trojans to disrupt a normal operating system and prevent users from accessing the device. Thus, there is a high risk of losing important data to these criminals, who then might threaten their victims and ask for payment in return. 

To avoid such a situation, regularly backing up your data is one of the best ways to secure your business information. There are many ways of maintaining backup files. You can invest in cloud computing services and avail of online protected data storage. 

However, we recommend you have no direct or indirect link to the internet when keeping backup files. To completely eliminate the risk of losing data, download backup files and store them on an external hard drive, USB, or CD. And yes, keep them disconnected and away from the system.

 

• Install TLS Certificate

If your website requires customers to sign in, enter credit card numbers, or any other confidential information, you have to protect their data. This time around, you cannot rely on backup files as you can’t afford to risk a cyber attack in the first place. Despite having backup data, can we allow intruders to have access to our customer’s personal information? 

Not at all. Right? Therefore, we suggest you invest in Transport Layer Security (TLS) technology. 

TLS secures internet connections by encrypting data sent between your browser, the site you visit, and the website server. Since it helps transmit data privately, the hackers can not breach in and steal or modify the data.

 

• Use Secure Network 

Another business protection technique is to use a secure network and keep cybercriminals at bay. 

We suggest you install firewalls on your servers and all the devices you use. It will monitor incoming and outgoing network traffic and prevent unauthorized access to your system.

 

• Use Best Email Security Practices

Sending spam emails with malicious attachments is the most common means for intruders to breach the system. 

A business receives countless emails every day. However, most of these emails are not legitimate and fall under the spam category. And when you open such emails, malicious software autorun some files and takes over the system.

So to ensure business protection, you have to avoid spam email by every means. The best way is to use temporary email services when visiting suspicious websites or when communicating with unknown people on the internet. It will make you appear anonymous on public servers and thus keep the spammers away. 

 

• Strong Passwords and Multi-factor Authentication to Rescue

Strong business protection demands unbreakable passwords. So pay close attention when making one. Ideally, passes combined with upper and lower case letters, numbers, and special symbols are harder to crack. 

For additional security, make a policy of changing your passwords regularly whenever your employee leaves the business.

Furthermore, another simple yet effective way of protecting business data is by using multi-factor authentication (MFA). To access the system, you will have to provide two or more proofs of your identity. Examples of MFA include receiving a code on a separate device, such as a personal phone, when logging in to the business.

 

• Keep Your System Up-To-Date

A system with up-to-date security software is a must for every online business. Since cybercriminals are on the lookout for targets with weak security patches, outdated software is an open invitation to cyber attacks.

For your online business protection, we suggest you regularly update your security software and other software programs installed on your computer. To save time and never miss an update, you can turn on auto-update for your software.

 

• Educate Your Employees On Cyber Threats

Despite all the efforts to secure your business, it won’t suffice if your employees are unaware of the potential of cyber threats. You can empty all your pockets on high-end anti-virus software, but if your employees are clicking on the pop-ups and other malicious attachments – malware will still infect your system.

Therefore, educate your employees about potential cyber threats and how to prevent them. Also, educate them about various anti-virus programs so they can use them to keep their devices clean. 

 

• Consider Investing in Cyber Insurance

You can have the finest of security, but still, there will be a chance of an intruder with advanced malware breaching in. At this point, it is best to invest in cyber insurance.

A cyber insurance policy can help you cover your losses from cyber attacks. Not just that, but it will also cover claim costs made by individuals harmed because of your business’s actions. With increasing cyber crimes, having insurance is important for business protection.

Conclusion

Summing it up, with ever-advancing cyber threats, business protection has become quite challenging for entrepreneurs. 

To avoid cyber criminals from hacking into your system, you can get a TLS certificate for encrypted data transfer and a temporary mailbox to prevent spam and malicious emails. Some other tips to protect your online business include using a secure network for business practices, keeping strong passwords and MFA, maintaining backup files, and investing in cyber insurance.

With that said, we hope this post helps you keep the intruders at bay. If you find it valuable, share it with your fellow online entrepreneurs.