Best Cybersecurity Tips for Protecting your Startup

A big percentage of founders and executives that begin a startup tend to focus on areas like marketing and gaining new users. However, one sector they fail to pay attention to is cybersecurity. A single data breach of a company can permanently cripple the organization, irrespective of how bright the company’s vision is.

3.86 million dollars. That’s how much a security breach costs a firm on average in 2020 according to Ponemon Institute. Even if the business manages to recover from the financial blow, how does it intend to regain customer trust?

The enemy in this case is the hacker. To protect your startup from them, you need to understand the techniques they use.

Most Utilized Hacking Methods

Social Engineering

The social engineering method is used by hackers to gain entry into a system via human trust. Employees are more likely to give out personal details to people they trust. Also, the concept of familiarity could be used, just like in the case of phishing.

Ransomware

Ransomware, unlike other types of malicious software, serves only one purpose: monetary compensation. Data is needed to function and if it’s not accessible, a problem ensues. A typical firm/startup will be compelled to pay the ransom because ransomware locks users out of a computer system.

Network Spying

At least 90% of the information about your startup flows through your network. A hacking group targeting your startup can try to intercept your data by hacking into your network.

The group could be doing it of their volition or be hired by a competitor. Whichever way, the effects are disastrous and could lead to a massive leak of your information.

Cybersecurity Tips to Protect your Startup

Provide Cybersecurity Training

One of the first ways to keep your data free from third parties is by educating your workers. When your workers can identify the techniques used by cybercriminals, it’ll be less likely for them to fall victim to deception.

Workers in this context mean the whole of your workforce, not just those in the IT department. You can employ cybersecurity officers in the short term for this purpose. Some officers can even utilize simulated hacking to improve your employee’s response to hackers.

Follow Safe Email Practices

As mentioned earlier, phishing is a type of social engineering that deceives an individual into handing over login credentials. It is usually successful when done through email. This is why you need to check your emails well before taking action.

If you receive a message asking you to act on something, check the link provided in the email to see if it leads to the correct website URL. If it doesn’t, you’ve been targeted with a phishing attempt. Safe email practices include ignoring unknown sender emails and ignoring attachments from people you don’t know.

Use a VPN

A VPN has several advantages. VPN stands for Virtual Private Network and is used for encryption of online traffic to prevent spying by third parties.

When using a VPN, you can prevent hackers from intercepting information on your network. If your employees want to use a public WiFi network, which is usually unencrypted, using a VPN can encrypt their Internet traffic and keep it protected from cyber threats. This particularly helps if the worker is utilizing the Wi-Fi network to access your online workplace.

Final Thoughts

Preventing a data breach is a measure overlooked by most startups. However, a single privacy hack can shred a business plan to pieces and ruin a firm. With methods like ransomware, phishing, and network spying, hackers can get information about your business.

To protect your firm, you have to get a VPN for your business, utilize secure email practices, and teach your employees computer security.