Cyber terrorism and online crime is becoming moreprominent in today’s society. It’s actually one of the key areas of modern day policing and within the IT sector, security is the fastest growing and most in demand genre of skills employers and business clients are looking for.
We often only tend to hear about major scandals such as when Uber and the NHS were held at ransom last year, though there are smaller crimes committed on the web every minute, many of which are incredibly difficult to trace and cost both businesses and individuals a small fortune.
In the physical world, things are more tangible, for instance, if you had a traditional retail business you could employ a burly security guard to act as a deterrent to thieves. You could also look for conex containers for sale and store items in a secure steel storage container, whereas on the web, things are so intangible that it feels like we can’t protect things in the same way we can in the offline world.
A shop might set-up a few physical CCTV cameras and protect their stock using electromagnetic security tags or new RFID tags, and in this context, security is a very tangible thing that would-be thieves take a huge risk with, on the basis they have to present themselves and risk being caught in the act.
Today, however, cybercriminals are operating from the comfort of their own home and might not even be in the same country, meaning there’s much lower risk and much higher convenience with online theft than offline theft.
Further to this, thieves can bounce their IP around so many different locations that it would be hard to ever find their true location.
Essentially, cybercrime is growing at an exponential rate so we’re going to look at five principles to keep your business safe.
- HAVE SURVEILLANCE IN PLACE
Antivirus software protects your computer and website in a similar way to how security cameras and security guards can act as a deterrent and filter to catch thieves within a physical retail environment.
- DON’T LEAVE THE DOOR OPEN
It’s unlikely that you would leave the door open to your premises or home so that anyone could just come in. Instead, you lock the door with a unique key. The most important aspect to consider on this front is to make sure you have adequate protection against hackers trying to violate your website, and to use solid passwords.
Indeed, in the online world, your lock and key are your password – so ensure you choose an advanced password that is secure.
- USE A SECURE PAYMENT PROVIDER
You will want to use a reputable payment system such as PayPal or Stripe to process payments in a secure way. Payment processing is understandably a key target for hackers, so it’s important you ensure your website is using the latest and most advanced payment processors available in order to build trust and credibility but also to reduce your liability should disaster strike.
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