Posts Tagged ‘security’

Keeping Your Business Data Secure

January 4th, 2011 :: Maria Valdez Haubrich

By Maria Valdez Haubrich

When you think about how easy it can be for your business’s crucial customer, financial and operations data to get hacked into, it’s scary. All it could take is for one employee to click on the wrong link in a spam e-mail, and a virus could infect your whole network. Worse, if key data is exposed, your business could be liable if customers are harmed by the exposure. So how can you keep your business’s data safe? Try these tips.

Use password protection. A strong password is crucial to protect business data. Kind of like locking your front door when you leave the house, well chosen passwords will ward off lazy data thieves. Make sure employees know the importance of strong passwords and to avoid simple passwords like their names, 1234 or others that are no-brainers to figure out. Also avoid things like keeping passwords on a Post-It on your computer or in plain sight on your desk (you’d be surprised how common this is). If you need to, you can even require password protection for individual folders or files. Look in System Preferences in file and folder preferences to choose these settings.

Inoculate against viruses. Viruses and spyware are everywhere, so make sure that all of your company’s computers have virus protection software and that it is regularly updated automatically. Popular anti-virus programs include Microsoft Forefront, Symantec’s Norton Security and McAfee.

Build a firewall. A firewall puts additional protection between your business and the Internet. The newest Windows and Mac operating systems both come with built-in firewall software. However, make sure your employees aren’t disabling the firewalls to make their systems work faster. You may also want to consider installing a more robust firewall system if you have sensitive data to protect.

Do regular backups. Every business should back up its network’s computers regularly. Today, with cloud computing options so prevalent, there’s no excuse for not backing up. You can sign up with an online backup service that stores your data in the cloud where you can access it anytime. Many such services back up continually so you always have the latest version of your business data. Backing up protects your data not only against digital disasters like virus and hackers, but also against real-world disasters like a fire or flood. Remember: regularly test your backup to make sure you can really access it and you’re backing up everything you need to.

Online hazards are getting more dangerous by the day—but smart data protection procedures can still keep your business secure.

Image by Flickr user Steven Taschuk (Creative Commons)

Google+

Tags: security, Technology
Posted in Technology | 1 Comment »

5 Ways to Make Sure Your Customers' Information is Safe

June 16th, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

Especially when you’re dealing with ecommerce, securing your customers’ information is absolutely crucial. If your buyers don’t think that they can trust you with sensitive details — like credit card numbers — they’ll take their business elsewhere. That means understanding how you can make that information safer is crucial.

Understand ecommerce security: You don’t need to go out and get a degree in computer security, but having a general idea of what terms like ’128-bit SSL encryption’ means are crucial. Most of the tools you use in an ecommerce website have certain security measures built in and understanding what those measures are — and if they’re enough to reassure your customers — is an important step. You need to be able to discuss at least the basics of the steps you’ve taken to keep information safe.
Limit physical access: One of the weak points in many business’ security measures is who has physical access to your computer and information about your clients. Even accidentally, someone can make a lot of information available if they’re messing around on your computer. Limit the people who have access to your computer, as well as your accounts online to those you truly know you can trust with your customers’ information.
Evaluate your security regularly: Just because your security measures are top of the line today doesn’t mean that you don’t need to keep moving forward and improving — you can be that the other side is working hard to break existing system. Check up on the status of those tools and systems you rely on regularly to make sure they’re still the best option. If necessary, like when your business has grown significantly, it can be worthwhile to bring in a professional to evaluate how your security needs have changed.
Respond to even the smallest problems: Small issues can be a sign of something bigger, especially in security. Keep an eye out for discrepancies in client information and respond to any issue (even the small ones) quickly. Such warning signs can help you avoid bigger problems down the road. Furthermore, notify your customers of such situations. It’s not impossible for them to notice discrepancies on their side and keeping them up to date will reassure your customers that you take such issues seriously.
Explain what you’re doing in terms of security: Not only do you have to safeguard your customers’ information, but you have to tell them that you’re doing so. A basic shopping cart on your website that offers no explanation of what will be done with any information submitted through it can be scary for a customer, especially in these days of identity theft. Set out your privacy policy and explain what steps you’re taking to keep information safe. Don’t worry that explaining that you have security systems in place will make them more vulnerable to anyone trying to access this sort of information — if you’ve got good systems in place, just knowing what they are won’t help identity thieves.

Image by Flickr user Brad & Ying

Google+

Tags: data, ecommerce, security
Posted in Customer Service | No Comments »

Setting Security Standards for Your Business: 3 Questions to Ask

May 25th, 2010 :: Thursday Bram

I’m in the middle of handing off a fair amount of my work-load to a virtual assistant. One of the questions I’ve been struggling with, though, is just how much I should trust her with. Don’t get me wrong — I trust my VA. But I’m still figuring out what the security standards for my business should be. How much access should she have to my financial records? What does she need to have a password for? Heck, should I let her set her own passwords?

How secure is secure enough? Determining the steps you need to take to protect your business can be a difficult process. Depending on the business you’re in, you may have legal requirements you need to comply with. On top of that, though, you need to make sure that your information and office are secure to your satisfaction. That can require a little research — for instance, what makes up the measures that secure your company’s information in an online application? That research can lead you to set a variety of policies about how your business handles security concerns.
How do you make sure your employees, contractors and other help stick to your security standards? For many small businesses, the biggest security issues stem from people you work with — not hackers specifically targeting your business. Not only do the employees, contractors and other individuals you work with need to be trustworthy, but you also need to make sure that they follow the security policies you set. One easy-to-crack password can provide access to an entire company’s computer system, no matter how good the rest of your security is. You have to educate the people involved in your company and make sure that they are familiar with the steps you expect them to take.
How fast can you change passwords, keys and security settings? In the event that something goes wrong, you need to know what it will take to remove a particular person’s access to your business. If we’re talking about someone who has access to your physical office, that can mean changing the locks. If it’s someone who has access to your information online, that can mean changing passwords. Depending on the type of worker you may be having problems with, you may need to bring in some outside help to make sure something is secure — I’ve heard unfortunate stories of less-than-trustworthy individuals leaving back doors or copying keys.

These questions are just a starting point in determining how your business will handle security concerns, but they are crucial to the process. No matter what type of business you’re in, you need to set security policies. Even if it’s just you in the office at this point, your security policies will help you decide what tools you need to grow and how to choose the right people to help you.

Personally, my VA and I are moving slowly, since I didn’t set my security standards in advance. We both get frustrated with the speed, but we’re talking about my business: I’d rather be safe than sorry.

Image by Flickr user Brad & Ying

Google+

Tags: employees, keys, password, security
Posted in Workforce | No Comments »