Nothing can damage a company’s brand, reputation and bottom line faster than poor security. Today’s news stories seem to feature companies that couldn’t keep their customers’ private information secure nearly every day. The scary truth is that data theft is merely one security-related problem that can destroy a company. Poor security measures can also result in business property and merchandise theft, fraudulent financial transfers and loans, and even physical and/or emotional employee injuries.
Multiple security checks
Your company doesn’t need overly expensive security measures to protect information, property, money and people. All companies should confirm that employees and visitors pass at least basic onsite security checks. These checks should include cameras at all entrances and exits, scannable employee ID badges and assigned visitor guides.
Complex employee passwords
Many businesses fail to confirm that employees aren’t using well-known simple passwords like “guest” and “password,” or some combination of names and dates of people and special events that trace back to users. You can effortlessly create long passwords that combine upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols for your employees with an online password generator. Have a secure way to store and remind employees of when these passwords change.
Employee social monitoring
One of the easiest ways for private information to become public is through social media. Employees might mention proprietary or other private details on his or her public social accounts. They might also use work computers to access sites that automatically download data mining software. Closely monitor all employee social accounts and verify in writing that your employees understand you will hold them accountable for any damages caused by their online actions.
Work website blocking
Employers and administrators often forget that they can set up a browser to block known NSFW websites and any sites tagged with related keywords. An IT specialist can also block “harmless” websites that hackers often target, such as free online game sites.
Hire a master
Someone who has mastered an area of study is always better than someone who has just started in their field. Instead of asking general IT specialists to manage your electronic data security, including customer and vendor accounts and financial information, hire someone in the Information technology field that has a master’s degree in information assurance. Information assurance specialists know how to securely manage data at all levels, including data gathering, storage and distribution.
These methods might seem like common sense, but a little investigation might quickly reveal that your company is skipping one or more of these basic security measures.
