There are several significant threats to your business’s network security. If your company is to counter them, it’s important to understand these threats and how they work.
Weak Security Policies
If an unauthorized person wanted to access your network, this would be the most specific vulnerability to exploit.
Having unlocked or easily unlocked devices make for easy targets for this kind of threat, and even less than sophisticated hackers can take advantage of any weak company passwords. Organizations that fall prey to these threats generally have no password change policies in place, don’t require automatic device locking after inactivity, or have poor access control policies in place.
Web Browser Extensions
Although most appear to be benign, some web browser extensions have been compromised by cybercriminals in their attempt to gain access to the sensitive data of users, including web history, cookies, and even saved passwords.
Public WI-FI
As convenient as public wifi is, it comes with its concerns.
Public wifi networks are a common avenue that hackers use when attempting Man-in-the-Middle cyber attacks, which allow them to intercept your data that’s following through the public wifi connection. This is primarily a concern for employees that work remotely, as these workers often utilize cafes and other public locations for free wifi.
Phishing
Phishing attacks are a form of social engineering that occurs when a cybercriminal attempts to trick you or your employees into giving up your private information via email, phone, in person, and now even through SMS communication. They accomplish this by posing as a legitimate brand or person that asks for your private information.
Malware
Malware is among the most popular and common threats to your business’s network. Defined simply, malware is malicious software, programs, or files deliberately placed on your network.
They go by many names, including trojan horses, viruses, spyware, etc. You may also encounter malware in the form of a Backdoor Attack, which refers to any method authorized or unauthorized users use to bypass standard security measures to gain access to your company’s network, software applications, or computer systems.
Ransomware Email
Ransomware is a type of malware that, once downloaded, immediately encrypts and prevents you from accessing your company’s systems and data until you pay a ransom.
Most come via suspicious emails that trick you into clicking nefarious links or downloading malware disguised as a regular attachment. You can also encounter them on questionable sites. Failing to properly update your browser, operating system, or installed software may also leave your business vulnerable to ransomware attacks. Remember that even after payment, there is no guarantee that the criminal will give you access to your captured data.
Your Employees
Unfortunately, the biggest security threat to your business is probably your employees.
For instance, the victims of phishing attacks are typically employees who were duped into clicking a suspicious link in an email. Of course, security breaches caused by employees are not always accidental. Sometimes employees are given a greater level of access to your company’s systems than necessary, which enables them to abuse their access privileges for personal gain. The simplest way to mitigate this issue is to set intelligent policies regarding employee data privileges and routinely educate your workforce on avoiding phishing attacks.
Unpatched Software & Hardware Vulnerabilities
As technology changes and ages, hackers eventually learn how to bypass old hardware and software security measures.
Because there are so many cybercriminals looking to exploit outdated security systems, one of the riskiest things your company can do is to dismiss the updates that pop up on your business devices and applications. Although it may be tempting to sleep an update to save an extra 5-10 minutes of your workday, doing so actually puts your company’s security at risk.
The best way to counter this risk is to maintain regular update schedules and have your IT team ensure that the latest security patches are being applied to company systems.
With everything that needs to be done, from the security audits to policy implementation, it can feel like one too many things to deal with on top of standard business operations.
Spend less time worrying about your security and more time running your business by taking advantage of our Managed Security Services, which come with preventative IT Security measures on top of our advanced threat detection and remediation solutions.