October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM) and to participate, Kappa has teamed up with NCSA to be a cybersecurity 2018 champion! Check us out here! With the increased sophistication of cyber criminals, cybersecurity is more important for you and your company than ever before. The fact remains that humans are the weakest link in cybersecurity.
Whether you are on one computer, a smartphone or a network, it is critical to keep systems protected from viruses and attacks. Whatever your role at work, you’re the 1st and last line of defense in keeping your organization safe online.
Fortunately, you don't have to be computer savvy to learn the basics of cybersecurity. Small actions can make a big difference in staying safe online.
Effective Password Management:
According to the 2018 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report, 63% of data breaches involve weak or stolen passwords. With this in mind, you should consider creating strong passwords as your first step to security. Unfortunately, many people are guilty of creating passwords based on birthdays, anniversaries or other significant dates. To create strong passwords, include a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, symbols, and numbers and never use the same password on different sites.
Keep A Clean Machine:
Regularly scan your personal and office devices for viruses and spyware along with keeping your software up to date. Keeping your internet-connected devices free from malware and infections makes the internet safer for you and more secure for everyone.
Protecting Sensitive Data:
Cyber criminals are usually after personal data, like email addresses, credit card data, customer names and social security numbers. This information may be safe when under your control, but the risk of it falling into the wrong hands is propagated when you share it through email.
Connect With Care:
Limit the type of business you conduct on wi-fi hotspots and adjust the security settings on your device to limit who can access your machine. Look for web addresses with “https://” or “shttp://,” which means the site takes extra measures to help secure your information. “Http://” is not secure.
Beware of Malicious Email:
A malicious email can look just like it comes from a financial institution, an e-commerce site, a government agency or any other service or business. It often urges you to act quickly, because your account has been compromised, your order cannot be fulfilled or there is another urgent matter to address. Some tips for avoiding becoming a victim:
Don’t reveal personal or financial information in an email, and do not respond to email solicitations for this information. This includes following links sent in email.
Before sending or entering sensitive information online, check the security of the website.
Pay attention to the website’s URL. Malicious websites may look identical to a legitimate site, but the URL may use a variation in spelling or a different domain (example: .com versus .net).
If you are unsure whether an email request is legitimate, try to verify it by contacting the company directly.
When In Doubt, Throw It Out:
Links in email, tweets, posts and online advertising are often how cybercriminals try to compromise your information. If it looks suspicious, even if you know the source, it’s best to delete or – if appropriate – mark it as junk.
Use KappaSecureIT as-a-service:
Our KappaSecureIT as-a-service program provides your business with a multi-layered security approach. We layer your network with a business-class firewall, anti-virus protection, best practice network restrictions and permissions, security risk management, employee education, coupled with monitoring and management of your mission-critical network infrastructure like your firewall, switches, routers and wireless access points. Kappa will effectively and proactively manage your network security, allowing you to rest easy knowing your company is safe and secure. Contact Kappa for your security assessment today.
For more information on Cybersecurity please visit: https://staysafeonline.org/