Busting the top 5 cyber security myths
In my capacity as the owner of an IT support and IT security business, I spend a lot of my time talking with owners of small and medium sized businesses.
In these conversations I hear a lot of opinions about cyber security and I have discovered over the years that there are some common misconceptions amongst all of them.
This blog post is designed to dispels the top five cyber security myths once and for all.
Myth 1: We’re too small to be a target for cyber criminals. The cyber criminals are after the big organisations where they can cause more damage and earn the most money.
This isn’t true.
Over 70% of all cyber attacks happen to small businesses, just like yours.
If you are the owner of a small business, please don’t think that you are not a target: you are just as much of a target as the BBC or the NHS.
I have seen and heard about so many small businesses getting hit by ransomware attacks or sophisticated email phishing attacks.
And trust me, it’s not a nice thing when it happens to your business.
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Myth 2: Cyber criminals wouldn’t be interested in our data because there is nothing confidential.
Strictly speaking this is true: cyber criminals are not interested in your data…
However they know that you are – and that is the key thing. If they put ransomware on your network, you can’t access your data and the cyber criminals know that many businesses would be willing to pay to get it back.
Think about it for a second, without your data could your business continue to run? What could you afford to pay to get that data back?
Myth 3: Our IT team has us covered.
This is blind faith.
The truth about most IT departments and IT companies is that they’re drowning in reactive work. Everyday there is a new set of challenges for them to deal with.
Remember the NHS ransomware attack? It was caused because routine maintenance was not done on the network.
I’m not blaming the IT department but as we all know there are only so many hours in a day and, as a business owner, you really need a process in place to make absolutely certain that your IT function has you covered. You should also be considering have external IT security audits on your network.
Myth 4: We use xx product, we have this area covered.
I wish this was true but unfortunately there is no single bit of hardware or software that can prevent your business suffering a cyber attack.
If there was, we’d all buy it and cyber criminals would be out of a job. That’s why I like to say that cyber security should be a little bit like an onion with different layers to protect your business.
Each bit of security hardware or software is a different layer and when they all come together they form a secure network… or an onion!
Myth 5: Cyber security is technical so that makes it an IT thing… as business owners we don’t have to worry about it.
Cyber security is not just an IT issue, it’s a very real business issue.
Everyone within your business needs to pull together to help you combat cyber attacks. To enable this to happen, you could provide cyber security training for everyone in your team and take another look at your processes, building security into everything you do.
Remember – the best cyber security is like an onion and good hardware and software make up some of the layers too.
So there you have it, my top five cyber security myths busted. Protecting your business against cyber attacks doesn’t have to be complicated and it doesn’t have to be expensive – although it will cost you more than a bag of onions! Please get in touch if you’d like to discuss your business’s cyber security.