As a small business owner, your livelihood is invested in your business. You’ll have all manner of important and sensitive data about your business on your computer network. It’s important to protect yourself from thieves and viruses that corrupt or copy information. You’re not just protecting information but also the future of the business and yourself.
It’s a serious matter. And the bottom line is that you are at risk every day. So take measures to protect all the information you can as often as you can. Here are a few procedures you can take to protect your small business.
Protect Sensitive Data
As a small business owner, you’ll have a whole new set of problems you’ll need to address. As well as the financial implications of running a business you’ll also need to think about protecting your data. You’re a small business, but you’ll have a lot of sensitive information about your business. You need to protect this data from hackers and other business rivals. Think about hiring the services of Netstar as your IT support network. They can ensure your computer system is airtight. Data encryption and password protection will most likely be the first step to take. As well as constant monitoring of unusual activity.
Backup Files
You need to make sure you always backup your files with cloning software. This is one of the basic levels of security that you should always think about doing as a business. If you’re producing a lot of documentation, try to use a program that updates and saves your work as you go such as Google Docs. You should ensure that all your files are backed up on the computer network but also elsewhere. These days you can use the likes of iCloud and Dropbox to save your work online. This allows you to access any file anywhere in the world at any time as long as you have an internet connection.
Internet Security
One of the most important ways of protecting your small business is to add some internet security. As a business, you’re always vulnerable from threats online such as viruses and Trojan horses. If you and your employees use the internet on a daily basis, you’re even more at risk. For a start, you need to make sure you set up a secure Wi-Fi network with a password that all employees can use. Then you need to give each member of staff a unique login and password for accessing the business network. Make sure your Wi-Fi gets protected from hacking by putting the proper security measures in place.
Firewalls
Another security measure you should take is to use firewalls to protect your computers. IT support should be able to help install this for you. Firewalls are vital for preserving the integrity and security of your business IT network. Firewalls protect your network when you’re on the internet. Any files you need to download or emails you might open will get analyzed by the firewall before they reach the network. This way you protect against infected files, and you can also protect against external files such as those saved on disk.
