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Companies that conduct business online need to take precautionary measures to protect their sensitive information. The hard truth is that a data breach could deliver a fatal blow to your business.
For one thing, you could lose customers. That’s because hackers sometimes go after customer data such as phone numbers, addresses, and credit card information.
Hackers might also be looking for your company’s important intellectual property. Once they get their hands on this sensitive information, the very foundations of your business could be in jeopardy.
Therefore, you must ensure that you keep all of your company’s sensitive information secure. Read on to learn how to keep your company’s sensitive information secure.
Secure Your Wireless Network to Protect Sensitive Information
First of all, secure your wireless network to keep your sensitive business information secure. For example, use a password to keep your network as private as possible. This is a crucial step, whether you complete business tasks at home or in an office setting.
However, if you work from both locations, be sure to protect each networks with a password. Additionally, set up your system so that your network name does not appear on others’ WiFi options when they connect with you. Follow this same process when connecting to WiFi hotspots as well. By taking these steps, you limit the possibility that an outsider will gain access to your company’s sensitive information.
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Strong Passwords Help to Keep Sensitive Information Safe
Another good way to protect your sensitive information is to use strong passwords. This goes for every employee and every login. Laptops in particular need to be effectively locked with passwords. That’s because if an outsider were to gain control of an employee’s laptop, they would have free-range to access to all of your company’s sensitive information.
However, if you use strong passwords for all of your company portals, hackers will have a harder time obtaining sensitive information. This will be true even if they do happen to gain access to one of your employees’ laptops.
Therefore, create random passwords using a variety of numbers, symbols, capital letters, and lowercase letters. Then, your sensitive information will remain secure and out of hackers’ grasp.
Encrypt Your Emails
Additionally, encrypt your emails to protect sensitive information. When companies take this step, they create a safe way to send confidential data back and forth via email.
Therefore, whether you want to keep in touch with highly trusted remote workers or you need to forward confidential data about customers across departments, you need to encrypt your emails.
Many online companies use encrypted emails to receive sensitive information about and from customers as well. After all, customers need to provide their personal information in order to purchase products and services. Therefore, regardless of your reason for sending sensitive information via email, utilize this security tool to protect confidential data.
Implement a Data Breach Strategy for Protecting Sensitive Information
Online businesses also implement data breach strategies to protect confidential data. Unfortunately however, even the companies that are best protected deal with data breaches.
According to hybrid IT solutions provider Flexential, “Having the ability to quickly and efficiently protect data and applications is essential for business continuity. The impact of downtime can damage your brand reputation and client commitments, generate costly fines, and negatively impact time to market.”
For this reason, every company needs to develop a strategy for protecting company information in the event of a data breach. This strategy must include replacing all passwords for optimal data protection. You also need to contact credit-reporting bureaus.
Also, if any financial institutions are affected by the data breach, include reaching out to them in your strategy as well. If you create a quality data breach strategy, you will protect your company’s sensitive information effectively.
Update Systems Frequently
Finally, update your systems frequently to keep your sensitive information safe. This method wards off hackers.
Cyber-attackers spend a lot of time learning how to hack software systems. When those systems get updated, hackers lose their work in progress. Often, software updates include important security patches. These patches keep hackers from exploiting vulnerabilities in the system.
This is why you need software systems that update automatically. This will help your company to stay protected. So look for software that installs security patches regularly. Narrow down your options by searching for a system that also has anti-virus protection built in. With a system that offers automatic updates, you can secure your company’s sensitive information.
A Final Word
Online companies rely on certain tools to protect their business data and their customers’ information. To keep this sensitive information safe, secure your WiFi networks by using complicated passwords and hiding your network names.
Use strong passwords for every login in your company. Encrypt your emails so that you can safely send and receive confidential messages. Develop a data breach strategy to keep your information protected even when hackers get through your security methods. Finally, purchase software systems that update automatically. Follow these steps and you will keep your company’s sensitive information safe.
