When your company collects personally identifiable information (PII), having an ironclad data security policy is a must. Knowing how to manage and secure this data away from hackers is paramount, but it takes planning and skill to do it correctly. A cybersecurity specialist has all the skills needed to protect and secure data for your small business, so choosing the right option is crucial.
Hiring a cybersecurity specialist is an important decision that you should consider if you collect any type of information deemed as PII, including as credit card numbers, home addresses, or any other data that could identify a person. A data specialist puts in place different systems to keep your customer and client data safe, and navigates regulations and new technologies to ensure it stays that way.
Keeping hackers away and avoiding data leaks is far beyond a do-it-yourself approach when the risks include fines, lawsuits, or a loss of revenue. Let’s take a look at exactly why it is important to ensure your data is handled by a cybersecurity specialist.
Why Do I Even Need to Worry About Cybersecurity?
Hacking and data breaches are more prevalent than they were in the past. According to The National Technology Security Coalition (NTSC) based in the USA, 2019 marked a dramatic increase in data breaches and ransomware exploits. Phishing attacks and social engineering also played a part in many data breaches. 2020 formed another record year for data scamming both on- and offline
Suspicious emails are always a threat, but cybercriminals use many different attack vectors to steal your data. Some criminals use social engineering, by which they contact and and try to gain information over the phone or via emails, posing as customers or even employees to gain protected information such as customer data or login data. They then use the data they acquired over the phone or email to steal even more data from a business.
What Does a Cybersecurity Specialist Do?
A cybersecurity specialist monitors, secures, and protects data systems from threats and attacks. Analysing current systems for current and future vulnerabilities is an essential function of their work. The specialist can also help small businesses develop a data protection policy for their employees to follow.
5 Benefits of Hiring Help for Cybersecurity
There are many benefits of hiring help to keep your company’s data secure. Below, we focus on the five key benefits of having a cybersecurity expert working with you.
1. You Can Fully Embrace New Technology
Technology changes at a breakneck pace. Customers today expect businesses to adapt and embrace changes such as moving sales and customer support online and keeping up with a social media presence. A cybersecurity specialist will help you plan for, integrate, and protect any new technologies you choose to use.
2. Develop an Effective Cybersecurity Policy
Having policies in place for employees to follow whenever there is a threat or question of who should have access to data is critical to preventing data breaches and leaks. Cybersecurity policies usually include how and where to store data, the type of encryption used, and control of who accesses each kind of data. Your company can add cybersecurity policies into yearly training so that your employees know what processes to follow no matter what happens.
3. Protection From Most Threats
Cybersecurity professionals have the experience to secure your company’s data to protect against many types of threats. They will create secure data backups so that if your data becomes compromised by hackers, it will not be entirely lost. The IT professional also trains your employees to recognise phishing emails or texts and social engineering attempts.
4. Protection From Lawsuits and Data Loss
Lawsuits over data breaches are more and more common. LinkedIn settled a 1.25 million US dollar class-action lawsuit in 2015 over a 2012 data breach that compromised 6.5 million accounts. If a hacker exposes important consumer data, you could be on the hook for millions of kiwi dollars.
Ransomware is another threat. Unlike data breaches, ransomware encrypts all of your data and demands a ransom to unlock it. In many cases, even if you did pay, you may still lose the data. A cybersecurity professional can mitigate the risk of data breaches and loss.
5. Customers Will Trust You
For many consumers, keeping their data secure when doing business online and in person is a genuine concern. Just one instance of a data breach could cost you a significant drop in repeat business. Also, being transparent in the steps you’ve taken to avoid being a target for hackers boosts confidence in the consumers who use your services. Backing up your promise of security with professional grade encryption and modern data security techniques demonstrates your commitment to consumer privacy.
We Are IT Professionals
Whether you’re looking at integrating cloud storage into your business, need a New Zealand business number, advanced data security, or general IT services, Dynamite IT is here to help. We’re always at the forefront of new information technologies and implementing them into your business best.
As a Wellington based business ourselves, we understand the needs of local businesses. We have tailored our range of managed products and IT services to take the hassle out of your business infrastructure. Our response time is fast as we are based in Upper Hutt and service the Wellington region including Lower Hutt, Wellington CBD and Porirua City.
Dynamite IT believes in building streamlined IT systems that run so smoothly that you forget they’re there in the background. On top of professional IT systems, we also provide expert IT support to ensure you never feel alone. For a local team that can help with everything from 0800 numbers to web design, we are the IT experts you can trust and rely on – give us a call today.