For nearly 20 years, Cybersecurity Awareness Month has served to raise awareness about the importance of cybersecurity across the Nation. The overarching theme: “Do your part, #BeCyberSmart” encourages individuals and organizations to own their role in protecting their part of cyberspace, stressing personal accountability and the importance of taking proactive steps to enhance cybersecurity. With this in mind, we’ve compiled a list of recommendations to help you keep your data and online activities safe in an age of ongoing cybersecurity threats.
Secure Your System
Regardless of how your company’s online network is configured, make sure it’s running on a secure system. Use firewalls and encrypting to secure your internet connections and your servers. If you use Wi-Fi, make sure it’s hidden and protected by a strong password — and change the password frequently. Only grant network access to authorized personnel.
Require Strong Passwords for Employee Logins
Employees who log into the system should each have an individual login with a strong password that is difficult to guess. Employees should also be prompted to change passwords regularly.
Remote Access: Use With Caution
If you log into your company’s network offsite using a smartphone or other mobile device, remember that you aren’t necessarily accessing the system using a secure server. Don’t log in using public WiFi, for example — or if you do, log in using a virtual private network (VPN) to hide from hackers.
Perform Frequent Viruses, Spyware and Malware Scans
You should have a strong antivirus, anti-spyware program in place to guard your system, and make sure it receives the latest updates to make sure newer viruses can be detected and eradicated from the system.
Run Updates on All Software
It’s a pain to keep up with software updates, but when developers send these to you, they’re usually dealing with newly discovered cybersecurity threats. Always keep operating systems and other software up to date.
Back Up Your System
You should be running full backups regularly of your entire system, from shared drives to individual computers. That way, if a hacker crashes your system, you won’t lose data and you can restore at least most of your functionality.
Use Multi-Step Logins Whenever Possible
You don’t want to spend all day logging in, but in truth, the more steps to the login process, the safer it is. With HandyTrac key control, for example, our systems are designed for employees accessing key boxes to take several steps to verify their identity. Some units even include biometric (fingerprint) identification which provides excellent security against intruders and hackers.
To learn more about our secure key control systems, contact HandyTrac today!