How to Secure Your Small Business in a Comprehensive Way

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(Newswire.net — June 1, 2018) — Security is one of the most important things a business needs right now. For small businesses operating from a brick-and-mortar office or establishment, having sufficient security measures is a way to mitigate a lot of the risks associated with business operations. At the same time, businesses also need to be more aware of cybersecurity and threats coming from the digital world.

It is no longer enough to see security from one point of view. Business security is quickly becoming a holistic thing, covering both online and offline security threats through the use of multiple measures. You can get started with this holistic security approach by implementing the following security measures as the foundation for better business security.

Start with Your Devices

The smartphones and laptops used by people working for the business carry the biggest security risk and need to be handled first. This includes the smartphone you use to reply to business emails and check payments to vendors.

Since smartphones are small and portable, there are a lot of risks associated with them. Losing your smartphone somewhere or having it stolen is often the start of more security breaches. Every smartphone associated with the business needs to be locked. You can also go a step further by enforcing the use of encryption among employees.

With the help of services like Apple’s Find My iPhone, the risk of information theft and further security breaches is lower. You can wipe the phone remotely or completely lock the device until it is returned. Be sure to have this type of service activated on all smartphones that carry sensitive business-related data.

Use Strong Passwords

On average, we use eight different accounts every day. This includes the different email accounts we have, our social media accounts, and many more. For employees of businesses, the number grows to 11 thanks to additional business accounts that they must use on a daily basis.

Not having proper password policy is a mistake that could lead to catastrophic problems. When employees are allowed to use weak passwords to secure their business accounts, you are exposing the entire business to information theft and other dangers.

It is also necessary to remind employees to use different passwords for different accounts. Using the same (weak) password for personal and business accounts also raises that risk by a substantial margin. When a personal account gets hacked, the attackers can use the password they acquired to access sensitive business information.

Compile a Security Policy

There are many ways to secure the digital information that your business generates. Using encryption and having multiple backup routines are great ways to ensure that the information related to your business – especially sensitive operational data – is always fully protected from data loss and theft. The weak link is actually the people who are authorized to access the information. This is where having a clear and strong set of security policies matters.

Every business needs a comprehensive security policy. The purpose of a security policy is to define how business-related information must be handled at different times. The policy includes ways to mitigate new security risks and how to handle the loss of information under different situations.

Having a policy is only the beginning. Once a security policy is put in place, it is also necessary to socialize the policy to employees and stakeholders. Every employee needs to understand the security rules and guidelines that they need to follow. They need to stay within the guidelines at all times to avoid unnecessary accidents and breaches.

On-Site Security

We’ve been talking about securing the business from cyber attacks and information theft so far, but that doesn’t mean on-site security is less important. When your business operates from a brick-and-mortar office or a store, having sufficient security measures protecting the premise is just as important.

A great way to start is by using better locks across the premise. Key control is another layer of security that the business needs to use. Not everyone can have access to keys and those who do must be monitored carefully. Good key control alone can improve on-site security by a whopping 40%. You always know who can access which area in the workplace.

Sufficient Surveillance

The last piece of the business security foundation equation is surveillance. No set of security measures is enough without the right surveillance and business alarm systems protecting the premise 24/7. The latter actually simplifies – and automates – the process of protecting the business from unauthorized entries.

With certain business alarm systems, police are notified automatically when alarms are triggered. This leads to a faster response and better prevention of further security risks. In certain cases, police arrive at the scene of the crime before perpetrators can do more damage or steal assets from the business. The alarm system completes the cycle and provides basic protection for the business.

Follow the above guidelines and your business should remain protected at all times. Locksmith Brisbane.