Is your organisation prepared for a cyber-attack? What measures do you have in place to prevent a cyber-attack? If your answer is ‘I don’t know?’ then this blog is for you.

In recent years, we have seen the rise of major cyber security attacks across a range of sectors, seeing well-known brands such as Talk Talk, eBay, Yahoo, Tesco Bank, Apple iCloud and more recently the NHS falling victim to cyber-attacks. It’s not just large businesses that are being targeted either, a recent Government survey reported that in the last few years 74% of SME’s in the UK reported a security breach.  Figures show a “sizeable proportion” of businesses do not have the necessary protection in place to prevent attacks that could result in the loss of customer data, in turn having a major impact on a business’ bottom line.

With the majority of cyber-attacks attributed to human error, it is more important than ever that businesses do all in their power to prevent such attacks by ensuring everyone across the business is well trained and understands the routes in that hackers use.  ‘Phishing’ emails followed by viruses and malware are the most common methods of attack. Many SME’s believe that due to their size they won’t be of interest to hackers, however the complete opposite is true. In fact, small firms can be a target as hackers know they won’t have the same measures in place as larger organisation’s.

Here are our top tips to help protect your company against a cyber-attack:

• IT Systems:
  • Passwords- Create strong passwords and change them regularly, only 1 in 7 companies currently use strong passwords to protect data.
  • Create a formal policy for managing risk.

• Staff training: Employees are often the first defense against cyber- crime. Many employees will know of the dangers of opening unsolicited email attachments; fewer realise the company printer and their personal mobile phones connected to the Wi-Fi are potential gateways into the company network. Considering the fact that 1 in 5 SME’S currently don’t invest in staff training this is one area that could be rectified quickly and cost-effectively.

• Assess data: Don’t keep old client information, delete any data that you don’t need. The new GDPR legislation will provide guildlines and help firms manage client data.

• Knowledge: If you aren’t aware of how you can be prepared do your research, get external support and keep up to date with the latest cyber-attacks so you can be prepared and minimise potential risks.

• Plan ahead: 1 in 10 firms currently don’t plan ahead for this type of attack. Implement a cyber security incident management plan. Create an action plan for notifying customers and put procedures in place to help you investigate should you experience a breach.

Ensuring the safety of others (businesses and brands) is of utmost importance to us and you can rest assured that CBS protects all its client’s data with a robust cyber-security policy and strategy in place. CBS is here for all your screening needs, if you are unsure how much to invest in screening or what type of checks you need please visit our website and take advantage of our Barometer white paper on Screening Best Practice. To speak to a member of staff please contact us on 01443 799 900.