Cybersecurity Strategies for Small Businesses
Introduction
All technology companies experience the same procedures during the business registration process, product development and ongoing maintenance.
Using small businesses with online products and services as a paradigm, it’s safe to assert that companies can benefit from hiring a cybersecurity professional from the beginning stages of an organization.
Company founders or upper management are initially responsible for developing cybersecurity policy, preferably in collaboration with an information security professional.
Cybersecurity strategies should protect contributions of web designers and software engineers during product development.
Cybersecurity professionals save companies time and money through information security maintenance.
Business Registration
Viewing business registration from a cybersecurity perspective may prevent companies from lawsuits and publishing unauthorized information.
Most cybersecurity consultants would advise companies to refrain from registering businesses as a sole proprietorship, due to lack of liability protection.
The registration process involves submitting business information to the Secretary of State’s office, requiring the registering agent to submit personal addresses when businesses do not have office space. Using a PO Box could protect founder’s personal information.
Limited liability companies and corporations provide liability protection and require the submission of Articles of Organization and Articles of Incorporation, which also list personal information.
Product Development
Deciding on building local networks or outsourcing remains one of the most crucial decisions for a company during the startup phase.
In companies without office space, employees access company assets through personal computers and various internet connections, putting the organization at risk from interacting with viruses and malware.
Often a first step in designing a network involves the decision to install a server on company property or outsource for management by other businesses.
The purchase and installation of a virtual private network encrypts communication from computers to the server and vice versa.
Installing firewalls on employee computers can provide warnings to users when they approach an unsecured section of the internet.
Anti-virus software can work in conjunction with firewalls in order to identify threat agents and provide a method of removing them from systems.
Cybersecurity consultants suggest strategies for protecting digital products while they are being designed by web designers and software engineers.
Robots Exclusion Standard, or the robots.txt file, can prevent Google and other search engines from crawling and indexing unfinished web properties.
Installing a SSL certificate, or secure socket layer, verifies the identity of the purchasing agency and encrypts information submitted to the website like shipping information, as well as credit and debit card numbers.
Information Security Maintenance
After the installation of encrypting technologies, cybersecurity professionals can update policies in order to maintain the effective use of company assets.
After the completion of the product development process, cybersecurity professionals create a plan in which to monitor the security of company assets on an ongoing basis.
Companies often use a tracking system in order to monitor key metrics related to employee performance.
Companies develop risk management strategies in addition to tracking systems in order to provide a method of identifying vulnerabilities on an ongoing basis.
Summary
Businesses with online products and services require the same cybersecurity principles despite being a small, medium or large company.
Prior to product development stage, companies exist as legal entities requiring registration and management by founders from a cybersecurity prospective.
A survey revealed that 64% of companies will experience at least one exploit during a company’s life span.
The need for a security team increases during the product development and ongoing maintaining stages.
Hiring an experienced cybersecurity professional will ensure effective network design, policy development and implementation strategies.