There is a lot you can do to secure your digital information. You can deploy measures that will not necessarily require huge financial commitment or processes and will still adequately provide security for your data on the web from being accessed by unauthorized individuals.
Network security measures are critical for your business. Regardless of the size of the business you operate, even if it is a micro or small business, you need to provide adequate security to your digital information to gain the confidence of your customers—a resource for growth.
Hackers are doing everything they can to access resources, and they understand that most small business owners do not prioritize their network security. No wonder a report showed that 61% of attacks targeted small and medium businesses. And in fact, about 40% of these businesses reported they lost crucial data due to an attack.
However, here’s network security 101 that helps to strengthen your security model and prevent unauthorized users from accessing computer networks and devices. It works by aligning multiple security layers with layers of policies and controls. And you can secure your digital information using relevant network security measures such as antivirus software, firewalls, and several others. You can also do simple things like turning off your Bluetooth when it is not in use and being mindful of the Wi-Fi networks you use.
Here Are Network Security Measures to Consider to Protect Your Digitial Information
1. Use a Firewall
Some systems like macOS and Windows have built-in firewall software to secure how an external party accesses your digital information. Firewalls create alerts if there is any intrusion attempt on your business network. Then, they decide if traffic should be permitted or blocked.
The firewall configuration has the specified traffic that can flow through it based on the business need and type. The most important security practice using a firewall is that all traffic should be restricted by default. Then, configurations can be executed to determine which traffic to be allowed while putting the sources into consideration. With the configuration aspect being a major part of your network security, the firewall administrator must be equipped with the required knowledge.
A firewall follows a given list of rules, sometimes called policies. It leverages these policies to make decisions over traffic flow. The firewall compares the packet of the frame it got to the first rule on the list. If they align, the firewall follows the instruction in the rule. For instance, the rule could be that the traffic should be allowed or disallowed and discarded. If there is no alignment with the first rule, the firewall moves on to the next. However, if the packet doesn’t match any of the provided rules, it would follow the final rule of rejecting and discarding the traffic.
2. Intrusion detection and Prevention Systems
Intrusion detection and prevention systems devices work passively. They watch traffic flows and log suspicious traffic from the network or at the end device. It can be referred to as host-based IDS (HIDS) or network-based IDS (NIDS).
NIDS are often connected to a switch’s span port or tap, indicating that traffic flows to its destination without being hindered while a copy is transferred to the span port of the NDS for analysis. For HIDS, it can live on the server, laptop, tablet, or other locations. And most of them only analyze traffic logs but not live traffic.
3. Deploy Encryption Software
Virtual Private Networks (VPN) can be very helpful in securing your digital information when located on a network, whether home, public or corporate, where people can eavesdrop on you. However, even when cybercriminals can access your network and files, they may still find it impossible to uncover the details of your digital content because of the encryption key.
Encrypt your detachable devices, such as USD flash drives, and use a VPN to encrypt web traffic. Every data being transferred will be difficult to read without the encryption key. For data-in-transit, you may consider Secure Shell (SSH), Secure Socket Layer (SSL)/Transport Layer Security (TLS), and Internet Protocol Security (IPsec).
4. Use Complex Passwords
One of the most critical network security measures every level of business must prioritize is using complex passwords. The more secure your passwords are, the more difficult it can be for hackers to access your systems and use sensitive information. Therefore, it is advised that you must deploy a strict password policy of more than ten characters. In addition, ensure that your and your employees’ passwords have uppercase letters, lowercase letters, special characters, and numbers.
If not, you can surely get into a hacker’s trap soon. They have an arsenal of tools that make it easy for them to break into short, easy passwords. Also, avoid recognizable combinations of words or ones representing your birthdate and other accessible information. Finally, consider using password managers if you have difficulty remembering your passwords.
5. Backup Your Computer
If you aren’t backing up files already, ensure to start quickly. That may be your last resort if all your security measures get broken through—-even the highly-built network security infrastructure might become vulnerable.
At the very least, back up your critical data to keep operations going rather than losing all your data and the entire business inclusive. You may start with backup utilities built into Windows (File History) and Mac OS (Time Machine). Also, consider an external backup hard drive to create enough space for those utilities to operate efficiently.
6. Install Antivirus Software
Antivirus programs can efficiently defend your digital information against unauthorized software access that may harm your operating systems. Viruses may quickly affect your computer speed or remove critical files from your systems.
You can leverage antivirus software to ensure your data is adequately preserved. Some advanced antivirus programs will automatically update to fix bugs and further secure your systems.
7. Install an Anti-Spyware Package.
Hackers deploy spyware to monitor and collect business or organizational information secretly. It usually takes a lot of work to track and delete. It may even perform different tasks like sending unwanted ads to your computer or creating search results that will direct you to unwanted malicious web destinations.
Some spyware is built to record keystrokes and provide access to passwords and other financial information. Using anti-spyware will restrict and eliminate spyware activity. In addition, you will find some antivirus software already providing real-time protection against spyware by scanning all incoming traffic and blocking threats.
