Digital attacks are becoming more frequent every year, and that’s evident through the fact that the US saw 3205 different data compromises in 2023, and that's almost double compared to 2022. While many of these cases may be attacks towards individuals, it's no secret that many industries are prone to frequent digital attacks with healthcare and finance recording the highest number of data breaches.
This is why cybersecurity should always be considered as one of the main investments for any organization, especially those in the financial markets. Proper cybersecurity will protect your data, your investment, and your customer’s data.
In this article, we want to expand into the best practices for cybersecurity, why it’s so important to protect your data, and more.
Let’s get right to it!
Importance of Protecting Your Data and Investments
With digital integration in most organization infrastructures today, data has become priceless in this digital age. It carries all kinds of valuable information like customer behavioral and identity data, personal employee data, customer feedback, trade secrets, investments, intellectual property, and a lot more.
If a data breach exposes any of this data, it could be a substantial hit to the company’s competitive advantage and customer trust. And with that comes a huge loss in revenue and business disruption.
These are the reasons why protecting your data with the proper practice of cybersecurity is vital for the success of any business in the financial industry.
So, let’s talk about the best practices for cybersecurity.
Cybersecurity Tips and Best Practices for Businesses in the Financial Market
With never-ending improvements and breakthroughs in the digital world, keeping up with new trends for security can be challenging, especially for organizations in the financial market as they are most prone to cyber-attacks.
However, there are some best practices that can be applied in most scenarios for the highest level of security. Let’s have a look at them:
1. Software Should Always Be Up-To-Date
One vital, but very simple change you could implement in your organization is to ensure that all software is up-to-date at all times. The reason why this is an important factor is because most software updates are improved security measures rather than new features.
This also applies to operating systems. Microsoft and Apple are constantly pushing updates to mitigate any potential vulnerabilities that can be exploited to steal user data.
2. Build a Cybersecurity Culture within Your Organization
A large percentage of data breaches or cyber-attacks are due to human error. In fact, 90% of all cyberattacks start with some form of phishing. Why is this important to understand?
Well, if the people in your organization are trained to avoid phishing and any other methods that lead to losing your data and investments, the chances of a cyberattack will be significantly reduced. The best way to achieve this is by building a cybersecurity culture in your organization. Here’s how that can be achieved:
- Understanding the dangers of emails – Malicious emails can easily get into the inbox of an employee and that’s a serious threat to the data of one company. This is how the biggest tech YouTube channel LTT was recently hacked. That is why teaching employees about the dangers of malicious emails is vital.
- Two-factor authentication – strong passwords are necessary, but with today’s password-cracking technology, they’re only a minor inconvenience for hackers. So, not only should you utilize password managers, but every person within your organization should have two-factor authentication activated for both business and personal logins.
- Secure file sharing and communication – file sharing and communication platforms are often invaded, which is why your employees need to understand the importance of secure files and valuable information.
- Avoidance of public networks and hardware – public networks, especially those with free Wi-Fi like in airports should be avoided as this makes an easy opportunity for hackers. Employees should also understand the dangers of accessing and logging in with accounts on public hardware (libraries, internet cafes, etc.).
3. Use Secure Server Hosting Services
While most server hosting services offer some kind of security like SSL certificates and firewalls, it would be optimal to look for security-first dedicated or VPS hosting services. Look for hosting services with a custom web application firewall, SSL, anti-botting systems, and, if using WordPress, the WordPress security plugin.
4. Implement a Secure File-Sharing Solution
Above we mentioned that your employees understanding the importance of secure communication is vital, but it’s up to you to provide them with such solutions. So, a secure communication or file-sharing platform is necessary for proper cybersecurity.
5. Supply Your Organization With Antivirus Solutions
While Windows’ built-in antivirus software and Mac’s three-layer security system are usually more than enough for private use, it’s recommended that organizations use third-party antivirus solutions because they are much more likely to be targeted by cybercriminals.
Look for antivirus software that can block fake sites to prevent phishing attacks on your employees and with active protection against malware.
6. Incorporate Regular Device Checkups
Even after building a cybersecurity culture within your organization, it’s still preferred to have multiple layers of protection. One very effective layer of protection is to do regular checkups of work PCs, laptops, tablets, or phones to ensure they are all clean of any potential threats (malware, adware, phishing cookies, etc.)
7. Keep Hardware Up-To-Date As Well
While software is usually the leading factor for cybersecurity, you still need to ensure that your current hardware supports all of the latest security updates. For example, many computers don’t pass the requirement check for Windows 11, so those computers won’t have the latest and greatest in terms of security updates.
So, consider keeping your hardware up-to-date as well.
8. Always Backup Data
Not every cyberattack has the intent of spreading/leaking your information to the public. Some just have the malicious intent to destroy company data. That’s why backing up data is one of the better practices when it comes to cybersecurity.
However, data backups should never be connected to the same network and should be kept off-site. Fortunately, you can offload this pressure to cloud storage services as they offer the highest level of security for an affordable price.
Be sure to frequently update your backup, so even in the case of a data wipe, you will be able to save valuable information and your investments.
Final Thoughts
Even if security in this digital age may seem impossible, with these cybersecurity practices, you can considerably reduce the chances of a cyberattack and keep your business and data safe. To summarize, the most important steps are to create a cybersecurity culture in the organization, provide employees with the means to establish secure communication, and keep devices protected and up to date.
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