Many small business owners believe their sites are safe from data breaches, hackers, and other security attacks. This is because many of us have an assumption that small businesses are rarely the target for cyber-attacks and theft.

Ways to Protect Your Online Business from Cyber Attacks and Hackers

The reality is, not all hackers have specific targets. If your site is easiest to access then it will be an easy target.

In fact, cybercrime is one of the largest dangers your small business could face. Hackers will target such businesses as they have less comprehensive security systems as opposed to larger businesses.

The lack of security for your business makes it a priority target for hackers.

How Do You Protect Your Small Business from Cyber Attacks and Hackers?

Here are a few security measures you can uphold.

Use Internet Security Suite/Antivirus

Having an antivirus for your business is a great way to handle computer viruses and malware. if you don’t already have an antivirus program for your online business, you should consider getting one that has an internet security program.

Use an SSL Certificate for Your Site

If you own a website for your business, you need an SSL certificate. One of the core functions of the SSL certificate is to protect your server-client information.

With SSL, all information on your site is encrypted which means the data is locked to everyone else but you. SSL is crucial, especially when dealing with passwords, credit cards, and identity cards. SSL certificates also verify your identity and improve customer trust.

If you receive online payment for your business, you must have PCI compliance, and having this certificate will satisfy one of the 12 payment card industry (PCI) requirements.

Use a Firewall

Firewalls are virtual structures with software and hardware and function to prevent scammers, hackers, and data breaches.

Firewalls are considered a network’s first line of defense because prevent hackers from getting into your site in the first place and work 24/7 even when you are not running the business.

Because websites run on code, cybercriminals can use that to hide viruses and malicious code that leaves your business data vulnerable.  Firewalls check your code and prevent any attempts to alter it.

Use Anti-fraud Tools/Fraud Detection Systems

Anti-fraud tools help you track suspicious activities on your site. It is a solution that enables businesses to detect fake, high-risk, and illegitimate transactions. With an anti-fraud tool, you will be able to continuously monitor user behavior, transactions, and other data.

This data is accessed through Browser fingerprinting and includes audio, canvas, and device fingerprinting processes.

You see, cybercriminals tend to get long lists of credit card numbers and login credentials from other sites or the dark web. They use this information to make multiple login attempts.

Anti-fraud tools offer proactive monitoring of all transactions on your site, automatic detection and blocking of fraudulent activities, and alert on risky transactions among other functions.

They analyze the data and detect all fraudulent transactions, bots, illegal access/purchases and calculate the risks.

With an anti-fraud detection tool, you can establish your customer’s digital footprint and stop any fraudulent transactions plus remove all illegitimate accounts.

Create Backups for Important Information

Data backups are crucial for protecting your online business. Backups are just copies of your files but they are important, especially if you own an online business. You should also provide your employees with a backup of the entire Google workspace so that minor bugs don’t slow down your business growth.

Data backups prevent data loss in case your system crashes, help in archiving information, and improve client relationship management.

But one of the most important reasons to have a backup for your site is in case of a cyber-attack, you can be ready to restart your company, with all your information at hand.

Strong Passwords for You and Your Customers

If one of your customer’s data is compromised due to having a weak password, it would be almost entirely on them. However, as a business owner, one of the roles you have is to improve customer experience. So, it is best to take steps that will prevent data breaches from happening to any of your customers.

How do you do that? Ask your developer to create minimum character password requirements to make sure everyone creates stronger passwords when signing up. Also, you can use two-factor authentication (2FA). It is a system that requires anyone to conform identity when logging in to the site.

Educate and Train Your Team

The security of your online business will only be as good as your weakest team member. Your site has a high chance of getting a cyber-attack when in the hands of one of your employees.

This is why you should ensure that all your staff, including the managers follow the security procedures when accessing your site.

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