People don’t usually think about small businesses when discussing cyber security. The media covers breaches in governmental and big-business security in excess. These entities usually have lucrative targets that attract the attention of hackers but are often backed up with an extremely protective network security system that’s difficult to crack.

Data is everything to a small business in this day and age – which means if you lose access or control of your data, you lose everything.

As dramatic as that might sound, the data backs that up. According to several sources, 93% of companies, no matter how big they are, are out of business within one year if they suffer a major data disaster without having first formulated a strategy for combating it.

Your employees are instrumental when it comes to protecting your business from cyberthreats. But they can also become targets for hackers and cybercriminals, and they might not know it. Here are four ways your employees might be endangering your business and themselves — and what you can do about it.

A couple years ago, TechRepublic ran a story with the following headline: “Employees Are Almost As Dangerous To Business As Hackers And Cybercriminals.” From the perspective of the business, you might think that’s simply inaccurate.

When it comes to IT solutions, most businesses rely on one of three options. They have a dedicated in-house IT employee or team, an outsourced managed services provider (MSP) or nothing at all. There is, however, a fourth option: co-managed IT. 

This hybrid option gives you an on-site IT manager or a small team AND access to an off-site IT services firm.

A record number of businesses said goodbye to the traditional in-office work model in 2020. They embraced the remote work model as they adapted to the new COVID-19 reality. It was a huge shift that came with many challenges, and some of those challenges are still felt today.

New year, new technology! If your business is still relying on older and aging technology, it’s time to think about updating that technology. As it ages, the effort to keep it running comes with many hidden costs. While it may seem financially savvy to keep older hardware and software running, you may be setting yourself up for major costs down the road.

Cybercriminals and hackers are rarely shy about the methods they use to attack their victims. Many of them are more than happy to share how they broke into a business’s network or how they walked away with thousands of dollars after successfully extorting a business owner whose company is now destroyed.

And What You Can Do To Prevent It NOW

If you own a small business, your business is a target for hackers. According to a report by 4iQ, a cyber security analyst firm, from 2017 to 2019, there was a 424% increase in the number of attacks on small businesses.

If you’re like many businesses today, there’s a good chance you’ve made this one mistake with your IT security: you don’t budget for it.

Or if you do budget for it, it’s not enough to really protect your business.

Time and time again, business owners decide NOT to invest in IT services.