When you’re running a small business, time and resources often come at a premium. It’s not always easy to take care of the “little things” – and those “little things” can often turn into big problems if you’re not careful. A hugely important but often neglected item is implementing basic security measures to protect your business information. Spending a few minutes to take care of theses basic security items can go a long way in keeping your business secure.
Change Passwords Consistently
It’s important to change your passwords every so often. Some operating systems do allow you to set reminders or even make it mandatory to switch your password after a certain amount of time. This is perhaps one of the easiest and least time consuming ways to be more secure.
Create Stronger Passwords
Changing your passwords on a consistent basis is a great step in the right direction. However, changing your password just to change doesn’t mean it’s 100% secure. Sure, adding a “1” or changing a letter to a capital is easy for you; but it’s easy for a cyber criminal too. Coming up with stronger passwords is imperative. So no, you shouldn’t be using “password” as your password!
Update Operating Systems
Many operating system updates include security updates. It’s important to make sure your operating system is current. You can make things easier for yourself by setting up automatic updates, or some sort of reminder to check for updates every so often. Ignoring updates or not waiting to do them until later can be costly.
Regular Malware & Virus Scans
Over the course of time it’s likely that you’ll contract a virus or have some malicious software installed on your computer. These can cause havoc on your machine and your overall security if you don’t take care of them in a timely manner. Doing regular virus/malware scans can greatly improve your security and make sure your machine stays clean.
Update Your Web Browser
Web browsers need almost constant updates and maintenance. Seeing as how the web browser is your gateway to the web it’s imperative to keep them updated. This doesn’t mean just keeping your main browser up to date. You should update any browser you run on your computer or machine.
As we said above, many of these seem fairly simple; and most of them are not that time consuming or disruptive. However, it’s almost shocking how many people fail to do these simple things and have it come back to haunt them later. Keeping your employee and customer information secure is important for any business, most especially for a small business. Don’t fall victim to procrastination or neglect, sometimes the simplest things are the most important.