We are all at risk of becoming victims of cyber crime. From the NHS to large global consulting firms like Deloitte…the portfolio of cyber victims proves that nobody is immune. Cyber crime statistics, both domestic and commercial, are on the rise. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimated from their recent Crime Survey of England and Wales that there were 5.6million fraud and computer misuse crimes in the 12 months up to the end of June 2016.*
It was also reported on www.gov.uk in April of this year that almost half of UK firms were hit by a cyber breach or attack in the previous year.** These are not figures that can be taken lightly. It is time to up the ante and do everything in your power to protect your company’s business systems and users!
A commercial cyber crime attack is much like throwing a stone in a pond… The ripples run far and wide, affecting most things in their path. An attack can be costly due to operational downtime, repair and restoration time, loss of data, reputational damage, staff concerns, increased future cyber protection costs and more…. The inconvenience is huge but the impact on your bottom line could be even bigger.
That’s why it’s worth doing ALL that you can to protect your business from an attack right NOW! Don’t wait until you’re forced to reassess your anti-virus software, employee IT training, cloud services, disaster recovery solutions and more.
There really are numerous practical steps you can take to protect your business against cyber attacks. Below are just a few…
- Anti-virus & Anti-spyware Software – Ensure you have a software protection solution in place that is suitable for your business and don’t forget to evaluate its effectiveness on a regular basis.
- Staff Training – Your staff can be one of your biggest threats when it comes to hackers gaining access to your systems. We suggest you carry out some form of cyber crime training with your team – their awareness and knowledge is key!
- Policies & Procedures – Staff handbooks and acceptable use policies need to be written in plain English and be tailored to your business with prescriptive guidance given to all users about what the company IT system is there for and what it should not be used for.
- Firewalls – Having the right barriers in place to help keep unwanted visitors out of your cyber space is a minimum requirement. You wouldn’t leave your front door unlocked so make sure access to your systems are locked down too.
At TechRelate we understand the fear that hackers have managed to instil in all of us. It’s not easy to keep on top of running your business as well as the latest advancements in cyber crime. That’s where expert help and support really can make all the difference. Please follow us on Twitter in order to see what we feel is worth considering in terms of business technology.
Our experienced team provides cost-effective, robust solutions designed to strengthen and improve your IT security. To find out more about how we can help, visit dev.techrelate.co.uk/it-services/ or call us on 0330 010 0201.
For further advice on the topic of cybercrime, check out the National Cyber Security Centre’s concise infographic: 10 Steps to Cyber Security.
Sources:
* http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/01/how-much-of-a-problem-is-cyber-crime-in-the-uk/
** https://www.gov.uk/government/news/almost-half-of-uk-firms-hit-by-cyber-breach-or-attack-in-the-past-year