Before you first got your driver license, what did you have to do? You had to pass a driving test, and maybe take a class, right? Why? To protect yourself and the other drivers.
When you first got a computer connected to the internet, did you take any security classes or pass any test? Probably not.
But you’re at risk, and you may not even know it. You could be targeted by someone here in Santa Barbara, or thousands of miles away.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the rate of cybercrime has increased by 300%. It’s a crisis, and like the pandemic, many in our community are not taking it seriously.
I’ve interviewed business owners and individuals about their security practices. It’s not good. From using the same password for every account to not having the proper protection on their computers, people are taking serious risks.
Think you’re not a target? Identity theft hits about one in three people. And a third of cyber breaches happen to small businesses.
Larger companies can handle these breaches; they can afford to pay the millions of dollars in cleanup costs and ransom. Small businesses or individuals, when they get hit, are hit harder — putting businesses out of business. Individuals lose money, can’t apply for loans, and lose hundreds of hours to correct their identities.
Don’t let these cybercriminals win. They see us as easy targets because we are uneducated on how to protect ourselves.
Well, today you can get started by educating yourself. Here are five helpful tips to protect yourself and your business.
» Educate yourself — Most breaches happen from human error, but you can be the best protection by learning about what the common attacks are: phishing threats, ransomware attacks, etc.
When you see news on cyber breaches take a moment to read about them to learn from them. If you own a business, understand your industry, the information you store and any compliance regulations you must follow. I host a website that offers free security tips.
» Protect your passwords — Your password credentials are the keys to all your sensitive information. Protect your credentials by using a different password for each account — the longer the password the better. Use a password manager because you probably can’t remember all those passwords!
» Turn on automatic updates — Keeping your computer and mobile devices up to date with the latest security patches will plug any security holes that the vendor has found. Just don’t ignore the pop-ups when you get the notice to update. They are there for your protection! If you don’t apply them, you don’t get that protection.
» Back up your data — Your data is the most valuable asset you have, and it is often irreplaceable. Ransomware locks your files and demands you pay money to unlock them. Even if you pay it, there is no guarantee you will get your files back.
Having a backup of your data will allow you to restore your files once you get your computer cleaned up, without having to pay some hacker to get your own data back.
» Device protection — Also known as anti-virus, but these days they are calling it endpoint protection because it does more than just block viruses, but also malware and ransomware. Windows has built-in AV security features that you should have turned on. But even when such software is installed there is still a chance something could get through.
Nothing is 100% secure out on the internet or on your computer. That is why applying layers of security, with you being the human firewall, is the best you can do to lessen the likelihood of something bad happening.
Ask for help. If you are unsure if you are secure, ask someone who does know about cyber security (like me).
If you are a business and have an IT provider, ask them to do a security risk assessment. They should already be doing one for you on a quarterly basis. If they aren’t, then maybe it’s time to find another IT provider who is concerned about keeping you secure.
Find one thing from this article and act on it, and you’ll be that much more secure. It starts with you to help keep yourself and our community secure. Spread the word, share with others what they need to do to be safe!
— Urijah Leyva is an IT professional whose Santa Barbara-based company, iTec Secure, helps protect small businesses from cyber criminals with simple and easy security solutions. He can be contacted at urijah2@itecsecure.com. The opinions expressed are his own.