Does your business depend on technology or a network to function? If it does, you want to make sure it is safe against cyberattacks, especially if you can’t risk the damage they can deal. A recent report found that 43% of cyber attacks target small businesses, meaning your establishment is always at risk!
In an era where technology is always advancing, you want a security system that can keep up. If you want to know about the different types of cyber attacks people use to target businesses, read on for cybersec strategies.
We’ve also tackled how you should deal with cyber attacks as well as how you can avoid them. Here are the top types of cyber attacks that could target your business and wreak havoc.
1. Types of Cyber Attacks
There are many types of computer attacks now against businesses. One of the most common cyber security attacks is malware and phishing. Malware can be a virus, worm, spyware, adware, or other forms.
Phishing attacks use your company name in emails to your clients and other people. They ask for personal information, credit card numbers, and passwords. Another type is the denial of service (DoS) attack, which shuts down a network by flooding it with traffic.
Other types of attacks on cyber security include man-in-the-middle, SQL, and zero-day exploits. During the cyber attacks called man-in-the-middle (MITM), the criminal puts himself between two parties. He conducts the business transaction as the middleman and steals any gathered data.
SQL injections make use of malicious codes installed in an SQL server. An SQL server is a type of database management software that’s developed by Microsoft. Zero-day exploits take place between the time vulnerabilities get out in public and a solution becomes available.
These different attacks create risks for your business and your reputation.
2. How Different Cyber Attack Types Affect Your Business
Depending on the types of cyber attacks, there are many ways they impact your business. Attacks that have a direct effect on your network can cause loss or damage to electronic data. These attacks often include viruses and malware infections.
Lost data is difficult and time-consuming. It becomes a very big problem when the data is of great import, like sales records. This may cause a holdup in production or services.
If the data gets stolen, you may face lawsuits on network security and privacy. If the virus you get is ransomware, you’ll have no choice but to pay the extortion money to get your data back. This also causes a loss of income.
Another problem that cyber attacks cause is extra expenses. In the struggle to keep business going, you’ll be renting a computer or paying for data recovery. This isn’t even considering if the cyber attacker stole your financial information and most likely your funds as well.
The biggest problem cyber attacks pose is damage to your reputation. It can cause a loss of future business or contracts from your clients. You won’t only have fewer sales but also a reduction in profits and loss of clients.
These expenses can cause you more problems than if you invest in good cyber security.
3. Dealing with Cyber Attacks
A good rule to go by is to aim for prevention rather than cure. However, there’s still a chance that your preventive measures may fail you. The process for dealing with the different types of cyber security attacks is simple.
The first step is to contain the breach. Think of your network as a person and the cyber attack as a virus. You want to isolate the affected servers and contain them as soon as possible.
Disconnect from the internet, disable remote access and maintain firewall settings. You may also want to check your list of pending actions and run any security updates. A smart move is to change all affected and vulnerable passwords with stronger ones.
The next step is to assess the breach. Is it a broad attack or a particular one? Who has access to the infected servers? Take note which connections remained active during the breach.
If you can pinpoint how it occurred, you’ll have an idea on how to solve the problem. You’ll also need to identify who got affected by the breach like employees and customers. The last step is to manage the fallout.
Alert your managers and employees of the incident. If you have cyber liability insurance, let your carrier know about it so they can assist you. Be transparent with the customers and address concerns from affected clients.
4. Protect Your Business Against Cyber Attacks
Start with the easy steps to defending your business: use unique and strong passwords. You want different passwords for every account or service. It’ll be wise to use multi-step authentication too.
Another easy step is to keep your cyber security software updated. It’s better to buy software that you know works rather than depending on free cyber security software. As we said, the cost of your losses after a cyber attack may be higher than investing in security software.
Back up any data in isolated storage to ensure you have faster recovery from a cyber attack. Use a cloud as a secondary backup for all your data. Many cloud backup and data protection services have disaster recovery amenities.
For future security, educate your employees of the policies about data breaches. Give them regular training about how to prepare and deal with these kinds of attacks. Read about the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
Also, buy cyber liability insurance for your business. General liability policies don’t cover cyber attacks. After all, they don’t cause physical injury or property damage.
Nothing can help ensure your electronic data more than cyber-liability insurance.
Take Measures for Good Cyber Security
The information era gave us the wonders of the internet. However, it also became a new channel for people with malicious intent. Safeguard your company from all types of cyber attacks by preparing for them.
Remember, you need to maintain vigilance in the workplace online and offline. A good way to guarantee the safety of your data and your information is to hire cyber security professionals. For a reasonable sum, you can make certain that your business won’t be an easy target for cyber attacks, viruses, ransomware, malware, and hackers.
Why stop here on your cyber security strategy? If you found this post on cyber attacks helpful and informative, don’t hesitate to read our other cybersec guides and related topics like hacker penetration testing. Visit the Tech section of the Bootstrap Business Blog right now to learn more about the types of cyber attacks that can be prevented.
