Whilst the internet offers a world of opportunity for you and your business, it is not without it’s dangers. E-crime is on the increase Worldwide. The fight against e-crime affects everyone who uses the internet and small businesses can potentially be very lucrative targets. By taking preventative action you can minimise the risk of becoming a victim of E-crime.

Businesses cannot afford to be complacent. Many attacks are not specifically directed at your business but could affect it nonetheless. Theft of data and identity can lead to widespread damage to your customers, reputation and your bottom line.

We recommend taking the following steps in order to prevent and combat e-crime, thus helping keep your business stay safe.

Passwords

Consider the consequences of your passwords being compromised and criminals gaining access to your accounts – money could be stolen, sensitive emails could be read and your business could be seriously
damaged. With a ‘weak’ password in place this is a reality:

-always try to use a password of at least 8 characters, combining special keys such as £, $, <, * etc;
-never use the same password for multiple accounts;
-do not use obvious words such as your favourite sports team or partners name

Data Security

The majority of businesses now hold data on their computer systems. The threats to a business with respect to data loss can include loss of productivity, loss of business and in extreme cases a cessation of trading. To prevent this happening to you, you should follow these steps:

-Use a hardware firewall;
-Encrypt your data and control who can access it;
-Employ a backup device, and use it;
-Have a disaster recovery plan in place, so you are covered.

Viruses & Spyware

Symantec estimate that at any one time in the UK “there are over 1 million viruses and malicious codes in circulation”. Consider a virus entering your computer system and deleting all the excel documents on your server¦ the effect on your business could potentially be catastrophic.

Spyware consists of a hidden program running on your computer without your consent, tracking all of your activity and sending it to a 3rd party. Spyware and viruses are easily combated if you prepare yourself by following these steps:

-install and keep upto date anti virus and anti spyware software;
-exercise caution when opening emails and attachments;
-exercise caution when visiting websites;
-educate staff, ensure they are aware of the threat.

Phishing & Farming

Phishing involves criminals sending out large volumes of emails. The spoof emails use fraudulent websites to trick people into giving out personal data. The branded email may appear credible but its aim is to steal your data and money.

It is highly unlikely that a reputable company would have lost account information and if they had, they would never request the information via email. Ensure your clients are aware that as a company you would never request their personal or sensitive data and to treat any such request with extreme caution.

Email Spam

Spam consists of unsolicited email, It can have a number of negative affects on your business, so is important to minimize. Spam can affect your productivity, slow computers down and even contain malicious software. To combat and prevent Spam, follow these steps:

-use an internet security package and update it reguarly;
-ensure staff do not give out their email addresses without good reason;
-never open suspicious email messages.

Network Security

Wireless network security measures are vital to protect the usage of bandwidth and access to a wireless network. If unprotected, the implications can include illegal use of broadband by individuals in range of the wireless signal slowing down your legitimate internet use. Criminals can even monitor activity over a wireless network and intercept information, such as banking access codes.

With this is mind it is vital to protect your computer network, by following these simple steps

-Businesses should adopt the latest standard of wireless network encryption. Most modern routers will allow this;
-Media Access Control address filtering (MAC) enables the inclusion and exclusion of computers/network cards on the basis of their individual MAC addresses;
-A firewall should be employed to block unauthorised access.

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*Source: E-crime: what your business needs to know, Cyber Security Knowledge Transfer Network, 2009