Pure Hacking Blog

It is an alarming fact that some businesses settle for the minimum when it comes to securing their systems. There are many ways that someone can hack into a computer system, but not every business person seems to realise this.

For many businesses, their way of coping with this aspect of safety is to assume they are safe until they discover otherwise. Unfortunately when that happens it is often too late to prevent the amount of damage it can do to the business in question.

This is where the issue of security is often not looked at in great depth. For example, someone who hasn’t done their research might think that the way to cope with a security breach is to get an expert in to solve it. This means that things can get back to normal as soon as possible.

That may be correct in principle, but in fact it does not even begin to cover the damage that has been done. Just imagine the amount of business that could have been lost in the meantime. How many customers are now doing business elsewhere because of the short-sighted approach to cyber security?

This is the main reason why you can actually benefit from taking good care of your security issues. The more you can reassure your customers that every potential problem is being combated, the more you will do business as a result. Your clients will take security very seriously, and if you cannot reassure them that you take it seriously too, they will go elsewhere.

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Here is a theoretical situation for you to consider. Let’s suppose you have been doing business with one specific company online for a number of years. You have never had any problem with them at all during that time.

And then the day comes that you discover your credit card details have been compromised during an online transaction. In time the problem is solved and you are reimbursed, but you cannot shake that feeling that someone else knows your card details. You cancel that account and get a new card.

Now if someone asked you how you found your experience with that company, what would you say? Would you remember the years of good service you had from them? Or would you remember that one major problem?

We all know the answer to that one. If you run your own business and you have an online presence, you must make sure you protect your clients in every way you can. The confidence of the people who keep your business going is paramount to your continued success. As soon as that confidence is dented, it can take a long time to recover it – if you ever manage to do so at all.

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It seems that we end up reading about the errors and setbacks suffered by various companies when it comes to network security more often than most of us would like these days.

But does that mean hackers are becoming even smarter… or is it simply that some businesses are (dare we say it) asking to be beset with security problems?

In some cases, that is certainly and unfortunately the truth of the matter. Basic errors can be made in many areas, due either to a sense of complacency – “it’s always been fine doing it this way before so it will be fine again this time” – or simply the fact that the right systems are not in place to handle the level of security that is clearly required.

This is where it pays to keep tabs on what other businesses are doing online. More to the point, it can really pay dividends to keep up with news on those businesses that have made fundamental mistakes regarding their internet security systems, so that we can learn from those mistakes without having to go through the hassle and worry they cause ourselves.

This is a better version of the ‘what if’ game. Don’t create a hypothetical situation that could happen regarding your business security, leaving you to figure out what you might be able to do to prevent it happening in the first place. Instead, you can look at a real live situation occurring to someone else and work out how you would cope with it – as well as identifying ways in which you could avoid it before it actually happened.

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There is no doubt that as far as your computer systems are concerned, staying safe on the internet is a constant battle. While you may employ professionals to perform penetration testing on a regular basis, to see if they can access any systems from the outside, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be doing everything you can yourself on a daily basis to make sure everything stays secure.

To a certain extent some of this boils down to common sense. You should always ensure you back up all your data every single day at the close of business, to make sure that even if the worst happens, you have all your business information on separate discs – which should ideally be held in a safe, and preferably away from your place of work, in case it is broken into.

It’s also important to think about the effect that your employees could have on the security of all your business data. For example it can be alarmingly easy for someone who doesn’t know what they are doing to open your business up to threats from hackers who are trying to access your systems from the outside.

For this reason it is a good idea to arrange network security training for everyone you employ, to ensure that they are fully aware of what they should and should not do when using company computer systems. For example, some employees might unwittingly open a suspicious email and download an attachment onto their machine which could unleash a virus. If this happens the consequences could be disastrous.

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No matter whether you have an online business or not, you will be well aware of the need to protect your security whenever you go online. This is particularly important when it comes to any personal data which could be used by other people in some way.

Internet security is always evolving and improving, but that doesn’t relieve you of the need to do whatever you can to keep yourself safe. The first step in the right direction is never to assume that the website you are going on has taken every possible measure to protect your information. That will always ultimately be down to you, and if you ever visit a website where things just don’t seem quite as secure as they should be, it’s safer to run in the opposite direction before you give up any personal information.

Any website requiring you to log in for some reason should always have a secure log in screen that you can use. If it doesn’t then anyone with the right knowledge could hack into the website and intercept the information you are logging in with. Always look for the secure padlock symbol and the https:// before the website address that indicates you are using a secure connection.

But personal security can be compromised in other ways as well. Take the proliferation of social networking sites for example. These always require you to choose a screen name (a user name if you prefer) and a password in order to access your account. Never use your own name or a version of it if you can possibly help it, and try and choose a different password for each website you join as well. It might be difficult to remember them all but it keeps your personal information safer in the long run if you do.

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