Breach Don’t Kill My Vibe

In our last blog, we mentioned how important encryption has become in protecting your company from hackers, but what happens when you suffer a data breach? More importantly, why should you take it seriously? As a full-service IT provider, amshot knows how serious data breaches are and how to protect your business from hackers, so we’ve put together a cheat sheet on data breaches and why they matter.

BREACHING THE SUBJECT

A data breach occurs when a third party exploits a company’s cybersecurity weaknesses to access to company information. Nowadays, even the smallest businesses work online to some extent, leaving them more susceptible to hackers seeking everything from employee information to financial records and intellectual property. Whether your company is completely digitized or only uses computers to log sales information, you are vulnerable to a data breach.

BIG IMPACTS

To some, the idea of a stranger accessing their business data is no big deal because they “don’t have anything THAT important online”—but data breaches of any kind can have a big impact. For example, data breaches typically affect the reputation of a company. Why? If you ordered something online your information was stolen in the process, you probably wouldn’t shop on that website anymore. A data breach can make any credible establishment seem unreliable and deter potential customers, even if the breach is contained.

However, a company’s reputation isn’t the only way data breaches can impact business. Customer information is just one example of data that can be accessed. Hackers look for any data that could be valuable to them, like financial information and intellectual property. With financial information, hackers can drain a bank account or crash a website. If intellectual property is stolen, a hacker would have access to ideas, proposals, designs, and reports that could set you back further than any other type of breach.

THE BEST DEFENSE

Every business is at risk for a data breach and the consequences can be severe, but amshot believes the best defense is a good offense. The first thing any business needs to do is assess their vulnerability. Certain industries are more susceptible than others—for example, healthcare is the most targeted industry—but establishing your company’s risk will determine how much time, effort, and money you should allocate to cybersecurity. From there, look at your business data and assess your need for external help. We all like to be hands-on in a crisis, but when it comes to IT and cybersecurity, sometimes it’s best to rely on professionals.

amshot provides managed IT services—including protection against data breaches—for businesses in a multitude of industries. If you think your company could benefit from beefing up your cybersecurity, reach out to consult@amshot.com to schedule your free consultation.