The digital revolution has introduced business to a global community, which has helped even the smallest businesses grow in unexpected ways. However, there is also the downside to digitalization. Many small business owners fear creating an online presence and utilizing the latest tech innovations, because of the increased likelihood of suffering a data breach or other type of cybercrime. However, there are steps you can take to protect your business and your customers from these types of threats.

Preventive Measures

The first step in protecting your business' online activities is in doing what you can to prevent attacks from succeeding in the first place. The usual software marketed to individuals isn't going to provide the level of protection you need to protect the data generated by your business. For that, you may need a more tailored protection system, which will begin with network penetration testing services.

Many cybersecurity companies will conduct a test to identify the weakest points in your system, so you'll know where you need to beef up security. The test involves technicians conducting ethical hacking experiments to identify how criminals will best be able to access your data. From there, they will be able to recommend security services that will eliminate those unauthorized access points. While threats can never be completely eliminated, identifying your weaknesses and strengthening security in those areas will go a long way towards defeating the efforts of cybercriminals.

Safely Storing Data

Believe it or not, cloud technology offers the safest way for businesses to store their sensitive data. Protecting data is especially important in a world where the costs of data breaches are continually growing. One ransomware incident can cost a single business up to $713,000. Even in light of that news, only 21% of small and medium-sized business owners feel confident in the level of cybersecurity they have for their organization.

The solution for many is to invest in cloud computing services, which feature heightened security measures as a basic feature. The reason for this is that the companies offering cloud storage (Amazon, IBM, Oracle, Microsoft, and Google to name a few) have too much at stake to risk a data breach. They need their systems to be as secure as possible, which means extending that same level of protection to their own customers. The vast resources that companies like Google and Microsoft commit to investing in cybersecurity are many times greater than that which smaller businesses could afford to invest, so paying the fees associated with cloud storage is actually creating a deal that can't be beaten.

Develop a Disaster Plan

The U.S. government recommends that every business, regardless of its size, develop an IT DRP, or information technology disaster recovery plan. This is a set of protocols your business will have in place to help it recover in the event that a breach does occur. The plan should provide guidelines to cover every contingency that might occur as the result of a cyber attack or other threat to the business' digital enterprise.

An IT DRP should have rules in place for the recovery or restoration of the physical computer environment in the event that a fire, flooding or some other factor damaged the facility's computer rooms. Additionally, there should be contingencies for replacing computer hardware, which includes laptops and desktops, mobile devices, and peripheral equipment. There should also be plans for restoring connectivity between the business and its service providers. Finally, the recovery of software and data should also be possible, which may require redundancy systems and off-site backup files.

As these brief suggestions indicate, cybersecurity is a complex issue and should be taken seriously by every business owner. However, the threat of a breach shouldn't keep anyone from taking advantage of the opportunities that the internet has to offer. By working with an established and reputable cybersecurity provider, you can maximize the strength of your security system and significantly limit the opportunities for a criminal breach.