In the digital age, data has become the new currency that businesses use to seek dominance in their respective industries. It’s the thing that has powered Google’s advertising business to become a $100 billion-per-year juggernaut. It’s how Amazon manages to put just the right product in front of users to induce them to make a purchase. It’s even how Netflix knows what you want to watch before you do.
At the same time, however, the massive stores of data that businesses hold on to can be an enormous liability, as well. Not a week seems to go by that we don’t hear of a company that has suffered a massive data breach. Sometimes, the damage is so widespread that it affects millions of people. When it happens to a small business, however, it can be disastrous.
That’s why it’s mission-critical for small businesses to raise their data defense posture before they become another sad statistic. In practice, doing so is much easier than many may assume. Here are four no-nonsense steps to get the job done.
First Eliminate Unnecessary Data
The first step a business should take to improve data security is to minimize their vulnerability by getting rid of stored data that’s not being used. At first, this might seem counterintuitive in today’s data-centric business climate, but it makes more sense than you might think. First, consider the fact that up to 73% of the data held by enterprises currently goes unused. Logic dictates that the figure for small businesses is almost certainly higher.
That raises a simple question. If the data’s going unused, and there aren’t the resources to change that, what does the data become? The answer is simple: it’s a liability with a big digital bulls-eye painted on it. For that reason, it makes sense to start with a serious review of what data is collected, where it’s stored, and if it’s needed. If no clear business use case can’t be identified in the near-term, it should be purged from company systems.
Second Restrict Access Appropriately
Within a small business, data access controls are often nonexistent. Even when they are in place, however, they still tend to be too broad. One study on the matter found that up to 48% of small business employees have access to more data than is necessary. That’s usually because nobody took the time to classify business data and review who needs to have access to it. It adds up to one major data security headache.
Imagine, for instance, what an angry former employee could do with business financial data. Or, what might happen if someone falls victim to a phishing email. It can be a situation that escalates from a small problem to a large one, for no good reason. So, it’s more than worth the effort to classify all business data and come up with common-sense restrictions on who can access it.
Third Improve Access Infrastructure
The average small business normally won’t have much in the way of complex computing infrastructure, but surveys have indicated that 75% of what they do have is in the form of on-premises hardware. That means SMBs cant take easy advantage of most cloud security products, and have to handle on-site data security themselves. That’s one of the reasons hackers target small businesses so frequently they’re an easier target.
At a minimum, small businesses should have a commercial-grade firewall protecting their networks. There are open-source solutions that can make this affordable, and provide automatic updates to new vulnerabilities as they arise. Second, no remote network access should ever be permitted without a VPN in place. Remote workers are often targeted as the weak link in the security chain, and a VPN defends against many common attacks. There are even consumer VPN services that can help secure traveling employees, and they’re available for every major device platform, as this rundown of the best VPN software for Mac demonstrates.
Fourth Provide Data Security Training
A recent survey indicated that only 31% of employees report receiving ongoing cybersecurity training. When you consider that employee negligence is the biggest data security threat that businesses face, that statistic is more than alarming. For small businesses, correcting that oversight can be one of the keys to an effective data security defense.
To do it, a training regimen should be developed that covers all of the relevant information security policies the business has in place. It should also include training on how to spot common phishing attacks and telephone scams, as they’re some of the most common attack vectors in use today. There should also be a clear incident reporting mechanism established for employees to follow if they spot anything suspicious using their newly-learned skills. Together, an informed workforce can act as a data security force that most would-be hackers won’t be able to overcome.
Stay Informed, Stay Prepared
While these four steps can go a long way toward making sure a small business can protect its valuable data, they’re not a perfect solution. That’s because new threats and methods of attack are evolving every day, making security something of a moving target. That’s why it’s important for business leaders and relevant staff to stay informed on developments in the world of data security. That way they can adjust their policies and security measures to stay ahead of the newer threats. With some effort, it’s possible for any business to remain secure. All they have to do is commit to the process, follow these basic steps, and work hard at staying up to date. With so much at stake, doing so is a business necessity.