In this day and age, operating a business without proper data security is a huge risk. Even with advances in technology and security, no business is immune to data breaches, which have unfortunately become common than ever before. Just last year, Careem, the fastest growing startup in Dubai experienced a cyber attack that affected about 14 million users. We have also heard cases where multi-billion-dollar firms like Sony and Home Depot were victims of data breaches. The unfortunate part is the SMEs are even more vulnerable as most of them lack the adequate network and information security protocols. However, there are a few security measures you can take today to greatly reduce the risk of a data breach. If you are looking for a data protection officer outsourcing in the UK, here’s what you need to know.
Role-Based Access Control
Your staff is deemed as the easiest path to gain access to a business, according to the renowned cyber security firm, Kaspersky. To reduce risk, it is essential to ensure that only authorized staff members have access to key data and that there is adequate network and information security.
Role-based access control or RBAC is a cost-effective way of determining who gains access to certain data in accordance with their role in the organization. The advantages of RBAC include increased efficiency and low-maintenance costs. With role-based access control, you can limit data or information access to what is necessary for an employee to do their task. This helps prevent information leak, a substantial threat to data security.
It is ideally imperative to tailor RBAC to your organization’s business model and security in order to minimize complications and costs. Start by creating a list of every hardware, software, and application with some kind of security like a password. Clarify the role of each staff member and have a policy
Data Backup & Recovery
Protecting your business data breach is essential, but what do you when an unforeseen natural disaster strikes, the server crashes or a power outage occurs? Data backup is a must if you wish to protect your valuable data from loss. To ascertain continuity, it is imperative to duplicate and host your data on backup servers. Your back up and recovery strategy should involve:
-Planning & testing responses to varying types of failure.
-Creating a backup schedule
-Configuring your database for backup & recovery
-Troubleshooting backup issues
-Monitoring the backup & recovery environment
-Recovery from in case of data loss
In order to save money and time, you should consider outsourcing this task to an IT support company that provides regular and remote backup through an automated system. Remote data backup ensures you have peace of mind, knowing that your business data is not only protected but securely backed up and up to date.
Remote Monitoring
Downtimes can be very costly for businesses nowadays, especially those that operate solely online. Remote monitoring ascertains round the clock cover, enabling your IT team to stay on top of incidents at all times. The servers will be monitored at all times so that when an issue comes up, it is automatically resolved or addressed remotely in the shortest time possible. Again, working with an IT support company is cost-effective as their job is to handle such situations. This enables your in-house IT team to focus on key business tasks. The only job is to ensure that you get a reputable IT support company as they need to be available round the clock for monitoring and dealing with potential threats.
Endpoint & Edge Protection
Endpoint protection software prevents end-users from unintentionally triggering a data breach by blocking access to unsecured web pages. This kind of security is advantageous as it protects all endpoints including desktops, laptops, smartphones, servers and any other device connected to your network. Edge protection, on the other hand, blocks harmful emails or websites from gaining access to your network via the utilization of spam filters, web filters, and firewalls. If malicious data gains access to your system, the end-point security should instantly disable it. Using both of these forms of protection as a cost-effective and simple way to ensure your network and data are secure.
