The year 2021 was record-breaking for data breaches. According to the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) 1,291 breaches occurred in this year alone. Aside from the alarming number, the cost of all of these amounted to $4.42 million.
Business information, such as employee data and client records, should always be kept safe and secure. Your employees may try to protect such important data, but despite such care, breaches can still happen. Outdated software or an insider can be the culprit behind such impasses.
If you want to avoid the problems associated with data breaches, you should take extra precautions. Strict security measures and finding the best security system supplier are just two of the things to consider. In this post, we list down more ideas and helpful tips you can follow to aid you in avoiding a data breach.
Make Security a Top Priority
Having poor to no security is the easiest way to lose your data to breaches. Add complacency to this formula and you are sure to lose sensitive and valuable information to attackers. Always put top-notch safety systems in your list of priorities. With one or more of these in place, you can rest assured that any sensitive information your business holds can be kept away from prying eyes.
Why should security be on top of your list of priorities for your business? Let’s cite Marriott’s data breach last 2018 as an example. In 2018, Hotel Marriott International announced that their reservation system was compromised and sensitive information was taken by the culprits. This incident affected 500 million customers.
Attackers gained access to vital customer information, which included credit card and passport numbers. In light of what happened, Marriott investigated the incident assisted by security experts. This investigation led them to enhance their network’s security. As such, the company was fined £18.4 million by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) for failing to keep data protected.
Security should always be foremost on your list of must-haves when your business handles important information. Factor it into every part of your business — sales, accounting, IT, and more. Make curated and conscious strategies to reduce the risk of data compromise.
Have a Response Plan
Falling victim to a data breach is both costly and challenging. That’s why a mitigation strategy should be in place. A data breach response plan will help you act on the breach as soon as it’s noted. Such a strategy should contain measures to help you respond expeditiously and professionally.
Now, there’s no “one-size-fits-all” response strategy. How you act upon such an issue will vary according to your industry. Here are some things a response plan generally contains:
- A baseline with current security policies
- Information outlining what characterizes a data breach
- A data breach response team. This should include individuals from critical groups such as Legal, Communications, IT, etc.
- Messaging and public relations deployment schedule
- Data breach insurance
- Data breach protection laws
Establish Access Control
Limiting access to company assets can help prevent a data breach. Have control over who can see your data by using access control solutions. Manage access throughout your facility and business, physically or virtually, with the help of ID card systems, key FOBs, login PINs, and so on.
Think of such a system as your first line of defense. When someone tries to access your facility or other assets, without the right permissions, they won’t succeed. Choose a reputable security system supplier and customize your access control strategies accordingly.
The Bottomline
Don’t allow your company to become a victim. Strive to keep your information safe from data breaches by using the tips mentioned above.
