Data protection can reduce the threat of cyber-attacks that could adversely affect your business and your reputation. It is important to know the best practices to protect your personal information and adhere to these guidelines. An unauthorized disclosure of private information could lead to lawsuits or fines that may have long-term consequences for your company or yourself.
Secure all your devices and files by using the use of a password. This simple action will protect you from hackers gaining access to your information. Make sure you use complex passwords that mix letters, numbers, and symbols. Change vendor-supplied default passwords to strong ones as soon as possible. Make sure to use the most current anti-virus software and regularly conduct a thorough security scan of your computer and servers.
Don’t send confidential or personally identifiable information via email. This includes Social Security numbers, bank account information passwords, passwords, etc. Email is not secure and can be accessed.
Secure your network and data Use strong encryption to safeguard your laptops, computers and portable storage devices. This will allow you send information to third parties securely and protect data on the devices. It’s also important to have a strategy for responding to a cyber attack that includes who to notify and how to respond (e.g. employees, customers, credit agencies).
Make sure you have a backup of all your data. Save the offline copies in an area separate from where your primary copies are kept. This will prevent hackers from getting access to your primary copies or deleting them.