Businesses have a lot to lose if someone steals from them. Generally, we tend to think of this theft in terms of either money or valuable resources such as technology and equipment. But today more than ever you have to protect data from data thieves. Having great data protection is as important as having insurance for your business.
Of course, these thefts are serious and can have devastating consequences. However, there is another kind of theft that can be just as severe, and that is when someone steals your business’s data.
Most businesses have valuable and confidential data stored in their systems. If someone gets access to it when they shouldn’t, it could damage your business’s finances and reputation.
This is why it’s so important to protect your business’s data, and we’re here to share how you can do that.
Learn About Data Privacy to Protect Data
Before we jump into all the things your business should be doing to protect its data, let’s talk about data privacy so that you can understand what it is and why it’s important.
Data privacy refers to the fact that there are certain kinds of data that aren’t available to everyone. This means steps need to be taken to prevent others from gaining access to this data.
Since most businesses will deal with handling sensitive data, protecting their data privacy is of the utmost importance.
Get a Firewall
You’ve probably heard of a firewall before, but what exactly is it? To put it simply, a firewall protects your data by monitoring who accesses certain networks. By doing so, it can prohibit people from gaining access to data unless they are allowed to.
This type of technology can be expensive. However, it’s likely more affordable than losing your business’s date, so most people would agree that it’s worth it.
Keep in mind that you will need technology that is capable of being able to run the firewall. So if your business is using outdated computers, it might be a good idea to look at these business desk computers.
Get a VPN to Protect Data
A VPN refers to a virtual private network. While there are many uses for VPNs, one of them is that they can help protect your data. This is especially helpful if you or your employees often work out of the office and connect to public wi-fi networks since this is when your data is most vulnerable. This is often the case when you employ freelancers like travel bloggers.
While a VPN won’t completely eliminate the risks of you being hacked, it’s still a good idea because you should be doing everything you can to protect your business’s data.
Create Strong Passwords
Of course, most valuable and confidential data will be hidden behind a password. Most people tend to pick passwords that are easy to remember.
This is understandable, but the problem is that those passwords are generally quite obvious and easy to guess. The harder and more complicated a password is, the harder it will be for someone to guess or hack it.
That’s why you need to create strong passwords. You also shouldn’t share these passwords with anyone, because that would put the sensitive data at risk.
Be Careful with Suspicious Emails
If you are not sure about an email, do not open it! If the headline has threatened or urgent wording be weary. Another way to tell a spam email is the email address.
Furthermore, many spammers will sign up for many email addresses with a string of numbers following a name or letters. That’s another telling sign for you to be aware of.
Back-Up Info to Protect Data
Be sure to back up all your data in a safe place. Keep it separate from your office and locked up. Furthermore, make more than 1 backup for your important data. It’s the best way to have data protection for your business and even your personal information.
Your Turn
Do you use data protection for your business and/or your personal information? I’d love to hear from you and if you have had your data stolen.