Barlop Technology & Solutions Shares How SMBs Can Protect Themselves from Cyberattacks & Ransomware

In fact, recently the Colonial Pipeline, which is responsible for supplying 45% of the fuel for the East Coast, was hit with a ransomware attack. This halted gas distribution, sending customers into “panic buying” throughout the East Coast and eventually cost $4.4 million to restore. Meanwhile, JBS, one of the nation’s largest meat processors who is responsible for 20% of the nation’s meat supply, was also hit with a ransomware attack that they eventually paid $11 million to resolve.

While most SMBs are aware of the growing threats posed by cybercriminals, they are failing to recognize that after large corporations and major infrastructure centers fortify their cyber defenses, hackers will have no place to turn but to small business.

Barlop Business Systems has been doing its best to educate business owners on the challenges that a breach, virus or phishing attack could have on any organization, and its best summarized by this statistic from from the National Cyber Security Alliance, “60 percent of small and mid-sized businesses that are hacked go out of business within six months.” While daunting, all this statistic actually reveals is that any preventative actions taken now, could have dramatic impacts on helping an SMB avoid these kinds of disruptions. “It’s always a delicate balance,” states Jose Lopez, President of Barlop Business Systems. “We consider it our duty to be honest in regards to the scale and scope of cyberattacks in the modern era, however, there’s so much that businesses can do to protect themselves, so that they don’t have to worry about these sorts of nuisances affecting them.”

While an anti-virus and firewall may have been an effective security measure in the early 1990s, technology has evolved dramatically since then. There are many other technology systems available, that can fortify any SMB’s defenses so that they are fully prepared and protected. Here are 6 steps that any SMB can take to protect its staff, customers and future from cybersecurity disturbances.

1. Use “Layers of Security” – Taking a layered approach to security enables damage to be quarantined, while simultaneously reducing the severity of any attack. This can easily be set up as long as the network administrator has taken good care to keep the infrastructure well-organized and properly maintained.

2. Activate Multi-Factor or “2-Step” Authentication – Most companies now require multi-factor authentication upon logging into key systems, requiring the user to confirm their identity before proceeding further, via text message or phone call. While this is likely to become ubiquitous across all platforms, especially cloud apps, other internal technology systems need to be configured to provide this basic, yet extremely effective layer of security.