Cyber attacks repeatedly lead to entire companies being paralyzed for days. Here you can find out what you need to know about cybercrime and how you can protect your company with five simple measures.
Who does cybercrime affect?
Contrary to popular belief, the risk of a cyber attack does not only affect large companies and corporations. According to a survey conducted by the market research company Vanson Bourne with 400 surveyed medium-sized companies, around two-thirds of all German companies have already been affected by ransomware attacks.
For so-called Ransomware attacks cybercriminals infect the victim's IT systems with software that encrypts all data. Access to the data is then only to be released after a ransom has been paid. In such a case, the company is paralyzed for a not inconsiderable time.
The German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) warned in its Cybercrime report for 2021 from ransomware attacks as the highest cybercrime risk for businesses. Even in 2022, a wide variety of entities from universities to dining services, electronics manufacturers and parishes have already been affected by ransomware attacks. Accordingly, cybercrime today affects everyone who has an IT system.
What risk do cyber attacks pose?
If a company is affected by a cyber attack, it always takes longer to recover from it. According to a Forsa survey, 39 percent of affected companies need four or more days to get their IT systems up and running again after an attack.
In the meantime, work in the company comes to a standstill. Sales are lost, while fixed costs must continue to be paid.
In addition, the goal of cybercriminals is regularly the exploitation of personal data. If a Data breach before, this usually has to be reported. This damages the company's image and it can be assumed that sales will remain lower even after the consequences of the attack have been eliminated.
If necessary, fines or other measures by the supervisory authorities may even be incurred.
How can you protect yourself from cyber attacks?
Complete protection against cyber risks can never be guaranteed. However, there are some promising measures that significantly minimize the risk.
Here are five simple steps you can take to make your business more secure:
1. password management
In a company, the passwords chosen must have sufficient security. This makes unauthorized access from the outside more difficult. A system for Password management is very helpful here.
2. access restriction
To minimize cyber risk, it should also be reviewed which employee can and, above all, should be able to access what. The amount of data that an individual employee can access should be kept to a minimum and limited to his or her area of activity.
3. trainings
In many cases, employees are in the area of data protection and data security is the greatest weak point. If a company conducts regular training courses that are adapted to the respective area of activity of the employees, the risk can be significantly reduced.
4. encryption of data
In the company helps a Encryption of the data regardless of where they are stored, when it comes to their security. Especially when employees regularly carry PCs or storage media with them, effective encryption is irreplaceable.
5. insurance
Depending on the company, you can also be insured against cyber attacks. Depending on the model, these insurances cover the loss of sales or even follow-up costs. Even applicable fines may be covered depending on the individual case.
Our team of experts will be happy to advise you further on the subject of data security, information security and also data protection. In addition, we offer Online training also offers individual live training sessions. Contact us!
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