Starting a business is not a piece of cake, especially for those who are thinking about their first startup experience. It might be challenging to move the initial idea to the actual building stage. On top of that, a lot of companies and startups don’t know how to manage their resources properly. That’s why the majority of the funds sometimes are focused on recouping the investments rather than securing the startup and its data.
This is why the lack of good cybersecurity hygiene can cause startups serious problems, such as reputational loss or compliance fines. On top of that, many startups that face data breaches don’t come back from them, forcing businesses to shut down. Keep on reading to find out about the most popular mistakes regarding cybersecurity and the best ways to avoid them.
Clear Cybersecurity System
Without a detailed system, there’s no security due to the different understandings. For instance, if we take a startup, we imagine a small group of like-minded individuals that are passionate about their work. They have different views and experiences, including different understandings of whether various data is confidential or not.
One person can post a photo of their office setup showing the PC screen and the files on it. Another team member can post a selfie with the startup’s planning board in the background exposing confidential data. Such misunderstanding can cause major security issues for startups. That’s why it’s essential to train your staff and implement a strict cybersecurity policy.
Access Rights
No, not everybody in your startup needs complete access to all of your company’s files. Very often when a startup member gets access to the files, they automatically are granted administrator rights, which, you can imagine, isn’t always necessary. In other words, the more people manage the data, the more chances that human error will get involved, increasing the risks of data breaches.
The right thing to do in this case is to hire a professional that manages certain files as well as maintains a clear workflow in your startup. Every member should know their responsibilities and access only certain files that are necessary for work. This way, you’ll minimize the possibility of cyber incidents. Also, if you have any third-party vendors, you need to make sure that they don’t have access to all data. Monitoring them also helps reduce the risks of data breaches.
Password Management
Even though it is as simple as it sounds, and everyone is aware that passwords are essential when it comes to good cybersecurity practices, more than half of company data breaches still happen due to leaked credentials. One tiny slip mistake, and hackers can use this gap to strike and steal the startup’s data. That’s why simple passwords aren’t going to protect the accounts or the startup’s network. Startups should also use encryption for extra safety.
Another common issue in startups is that the staff forgets to share their corporate login details to social media accounts, fails to share them with other team members, and eventually leaves for another role. In most cases, it’s impossible to recover the credentials at this stage. It’s vital for startups and their employees to use complex, long, unique passwords containing more than 8 characters. Remember, in perfect theory, no personal information or used passwords are allowed.
Data Protection and Encryption
Sensitive data needs to be protected at all costs. Some new businesses don’t evaluate the risks and the aftermath of cyberattacks. Despite that, data breaches can happen to anyone – both large-scale companies and small startups. For this reason, since hackers target everyone, especially companies that have weak security systems, it’s important to protect your business.
To achieve this goal, startups should encrypt their data. The normal-text format isn’t good enough to prevent hackers. On the contrary, proper data encryption limits access to individuals that have the key; this way, ensures that unauthorized parties won’t actually read the data, despite getting their hands on it. As an extra layer of security to solve this issue, businesses need to implement a safe data backup system.
Safer Business Relationships
Due to compliance and regulatory requirements, many industries must verify their clients and review their identities. Nowadays, with data breach and cyberattack numbers skyrocketing, it’s important to check the whole company background as well. Reviewing CEOs and their activity, and making sure that your potential business partner is not involved in any money laundering activities is crucial. Automated, AI-powered Business verification services help startups spot shell companies and prevent any fraudulent activities.
This way, startups ensure that they do not become a money-laundering channel or end up with huge fines along with reputational damage. It’s also important to note that many companies still conduct research manually, which takes hours, sometimes, weeks, or even months. Such smart tools resolve this problem, as the data is provided in one place. Also, digital services reduce the chances of human error.
Final Thoughts
Preventing fraud and safeguarding your startup from cyberattacks are the main priorities regarding having a strong security system. Of course, many factors help achieve this goal. It’s essential to start with your employees and raise awareness about cybersecurity by conducting training. That said, technology brings security challenges, but at the same time, it helps automate processes and save time tremendously. Special tools, like Business verification software or data backup services, will ease the pressure when it comes to efficient and effective security practices.
