As a small business leader, you know you need to work harder to protect your digital systems. Cybercrime is on the rise, and small businesses are most often the targets of attacks, as cybercriminals are eager to access valuable data and drain business bank accounts.
Unfortunately, you don’t have the big IT budget of larger corporations, which means your business cannot afford an entire in-house staff of cybersecurity professionals — even if you could find any to hire. Fortunately, there are ways to keep cybersecurity costs low while making your business a smaller and more difficult target for attackers.
Invest in Fundamental Cybersecurity Training for All Employees
The risk of cyberattack decreases when your staff has basic cybersecurity skill. While not every employee needs to attend cybersecurity boot camps or obtain cybersecurity certifications, they should at the very least understand and practice fundamental cyber hygiene. Some essential practices of good cyber hygiene include:
- Recognizing and avoiding potential threats, such as compromised websites or scam emails
- Enabling and maintaining encryption and firewalls
- Developing strong passwords and changing passwords regularly
- Using discretion when posting online to avoid disclosing sensitive information
- Permitting the automatic download and installation of software updates
Some employees may naturally maintain good cyber hygiene, but you cannot expect your entire staff to have the same level of cybersecurity knowledge and skill. To give your business a bare minimum of security, you should invest in cybersecurity training for all employees, scheduled quarterly, biannually or annually depending on your staff’s current competency and your budget.
Invest in Extra Security Training for Current IT Staff
The only employees who might be exempt from the basic cybersecurity trainings offered to the rest of the staff are your in-house IT team, who should have more intensive security trainings to elevate their knowledge and skill. At most small businesses, IT workers are tasked with developing and implementing cybersecurity strategy, but not all IT professionals have advanced experience in the cybersecurity field. While you could hire a cybersecurity expert to your in-house team, as mentioned above, cybersecurity professionals are in exceedingly high demand and thus come with significant costs. Thus, it might be more rewarding for you to invest in one or more of your current IT staff, helping them obtain the cybersecurity expertise you need to stay safe.
You might start by requiring all IT employees to engage with short courses that increase their awareness and abilities within the cybersecurity field. Any workers that show special interest and skill in cybersecurity may be encouraged to pursue online cybersecurity degrees, with your business covering some or all of their tuition. Because employees value employers that provide professional development opportunities, you are likely to earn the respect and loyalty of your IT staff by helping them gain useful skills that will advance their careers.
Invest in Stronger Digital Technology Policies Companywide
Whether you have consciously launched a digital transformation for your company or whether you have allowed digital technology to infiltrate your business inadvertently, you should try to take control of digital technology now with strict corporate policies.
Policies make it easier to develop and maintain stronger cybersecurity. Policies also give you recourse if staff are not implementing cybersecurity solutions or practices to your expectations. Some examples of digital technology policies that you should have in place include:
- Types of digital technologies that are permitted to connect to the business network
- Terms of acceptable use of digital technology on company premises or on company time
- Response plans to active threats to business security
- Restrictions on digital technology for personal use
- Consequences for failing to uphold digital technology policies
Employees should have the opportunity to comment on potential policies, and you might make changes to the details of your policies based on their feedback. You might post your digital technology policies in an easy-to-access location, so staff can double-check policies when they need to ascertain the proper course of action.
No longer is cybersecurity a solution appropriate only for the largest companies. You need to protect your business with cybersecurity strategies today, and that means finding ways to keep the costs associated with cybersecurity to a minimum while maximizing protections of your devices and data.
