National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) is an annual campaign to help people better understand and practice cybersecurity. NCSAM aims to promote best practices among consumers, small businesses, and home offices by providing tips for staying safe on the Internet. It’s a great opportunity for companies to increase awareness about security measures that can protect their computers from cyberattacks.

This year, NCSAM will run from October 1 to November 8, but you can get started now!

How to Keep Your Company Secure From Cyber Attacks

Running any small business demands a lot of time and effort. Unfortunately, many business owners don’t have the extra time and resources to think too much about cybersecurity. However, a lack of focus on IT security makes it much more likely for your business to become a victim of cybercriminals, whether it’s with phishing scams, ransomware, or other attacks. Partnering with an IT software and services provider is a great way to give your company much-needed cybersecurity protection while also helping you to stay up to date with the latest threats.

Here are a few key cybersecurity strategies an IT software and service provider can implement for your business.

Invest in IT Security Training

Ransomware incidents often happen due to employee mistakes. Even one simple error can lead to devastating consequences for your business. Training your team on how to recognize ransomware and other cyber threats is critical in today’s workplace. A managed IT service provider can educate your employees through ongoing IT security training sessions to ensure your team is well-prepared for the latest cyber attacks.

Back Up and Isolate Your Critical Data

Data loss can cripple daily business operations and significantly damage the reputation of a small company. For example, a ransomware attack can hold your information hostage unless you pay an expensive fee within a short period of time. However, creating data backups daily and uploading your critical information to the cloud can help you quickly recover this data without ever giving in to cybercriminals’ demands. These data backups are also stored in multiple areas in the cloud as an added layer of protection.

Require Strong Passwords and Two-Factor Authentication

Strong passwords are the first line of defense against attackers, so it’s important that you enforce a strict password policy in your company. But even with a good password policy, there’s still room for error—and hackers know it. To protect yourself from phishing attacks and other malicious techniques, you should require employees to use two-factor authentication whenever possible. Two-factor authentication means that when logging into an account, users must provide both something they know (like their email address) and something they have (like their phone number). This adds another layer of security to an otherwise vulnerable system by making it harder for hackers to access an account without having physical access to the user’s device or personal information like credit card numbers.

Conduct Regular Audits

One of the most effective ways to protect your company from cyberattacks is to conduct regular audits. Regular audits help you identify risks and vulnerabilities in your company’s system, which can then be addressed before they become major issues. The more often you audit, the more likely you are to discover a problem before it becomes a major issue.

Install Latest Security Updates

Keeping your software programs up to date is a top priority for any small business. These updates play a crucial role in patching any security vulnerabilities. Turning on automatic updates will ensure that your business receives these updates as soon as possible and minimizes the chances of experiencing a cybersecurity incident in the workplace. Automatic updates will also increase employee productivity, as they will not have to take the extra time to download each update manually.

Stay Aware of the Latest News in Cybersecurity

There are many ways to stay current with the latest news and developments in cybersecurity. One great way is to follow cybersecurity experts on social media. You can also read blogs and articles about cybersecurity, which can help you understand what is going on in the world of information security.

Another good way to stay current is by looking for new products or services to help your organization with its security needs. It’s important that you don’t be afraid to ask questions when doing this research.

Make Endpoint Protection a Priority

Endpoint protection helps you protect your company from cyberattacks in many ways. It can block ransomware attacks, phishing attacks, and zero-day exploits.

To protect your company from these types of threats, it’s essential to have an endpoint protection system that uses real-time scanning technology to detect and block malicious files before they enter your network.

Invest in API Management Software

It’s no surprise that a growing number of businesses are utilizing APIs (application programming interface) in their software and IT operations. As APIs become more and more critical to business, API security must also be a top priority for organizations. As with any other aspect of security, the key is to have a layered approach to API security.

Enter Layer7 API Management

Layer7 API Management by Broadcom Software has been built from the ground up with an API-first approach. It is a full lifecycle API management solution, allowing you to design, create consume, and secure APIs from a single platform.  While Layer7 provides a host of API benefits, Layer7 API Gateway, in particular, is extremely vital for API protection. 

Available as a standalone solution or as part of the complete Layer7 API Management solution, Layer7 API Gateway helps keep businesses safe from data breaches and cybersecurity attacks with its powerful toolset of OAuth, OpenID Connect, FIDO and more, ensuring companies meet the most stringent regulatory and compliance standards. Layer7 also allows you to monitor transactions across all layers within your application stack. It applies security at both the API layer and across the entire mobile channel to guarantee protection against OWASP top ten threats on all fronts. Watch this video to learn more about Layer7 and its advanced security features.

Conclusion

We’ve seen many ways to keep your company safe from cyberattacks, but using an API Gateway like Layer7 API Gateway by Broadcom Software is one of the most foolproof and trusted ways to stay safe. Contact us for more information about Layer7 or to find out how we can help prevent your organization from being a victim of devastating cybersecurity attacks.