Security from the start: Essential cybersecurity tips for startups
Startups are exciting, but as you’re spinning many plates when bringing your idea to life, it can be easy to miss out steps along the way. However, there are a few elements to your business where cutting corners should never be an option. In today’s world, as cyber attacks are becoming more complex and sophisticated each day, the right cybersecurity measures are crucial to the longevity of your startup.
The following guide from domain and hosting experts Fasthosts offers 6 essential security tips that every startup must know.
The importance of cybersecurity
Here’s why cybersecurity should be a core focus of any new business risk management strategy:
- Although any business big or small can be a victim of cyber crime, last year, small businesses suffered the most with two thirds of companies with 10 to 49 employees reporting having suffered some form of cyber attack.
- So bad is it, that 60% of small businesses go out of business within six months of a cyber attack.
- For those that do manage to weather the storm, such an event will set a business back an average of £65,000 in order to salvage damaged assets, pay any financial penalties and pay the cost of downtime.
- The rise of AI-powered attacks has made cyber threats more common and even harder to detect.
Top 6 cybersecurity tips every startup must know
1. Make cybersecurity a core value
Just like your business strategy, cybersecurity should be embedded in your company culture from day one. This means going beyond company guidelines and policies; it means creating an environment where every team member all the way up to the board understands the importance of cybersecurity.
To do this, make cybersecurity training a part of your employee onboarding regardless of their role within the company.
2. Don’t share passwords internally
Shared credentials across teams are quite a common practice in small businesses; however, they pose a security risk especially due to more people working from home.
Shared logins make it impossible to trace accountability and can increase your vulnerability to cyber attacks. 68% of global data breaches last year reported by Verisign involved a human element, including using weak passwords or password practices.
For that reason, invest in a password manager to securely share access when necessary without taking the risk of exposing actual credentials.
3. Conduct regular security audits on vendors and tools
Remember the Moveit breach last year? Like the saying goes, you’re only just as good as your weakest link and that goes for cybersecurity too. When the Moveit file transfer app was breached last year, it affected thousands of organisations around the world.
As supply chain attacks are on the rise, startups often look past vendor security; however, it is crucial to perform regular security audits on third-party tools and request certifications like ISO 27001 or SOC 2 compliance from vendors. This will not only ensure that third parties have implemented essential data security controls but have the right security policies in place too.
4. Encrypt all data, even old archives
Encrypting is one of the first layers of security, and will ensure your company’s data is hidden from or inaccessible to unauthorised users. And it’s not just current data that is valuable; old data and archives can be used by cybercriminals to engineer an attack too.
Use encryption for all stored data, old and new, including backups and old archives to ensure it’s secure from threat actors, even in the case of its security becoming compromised.
5. Allow automatic updates and backups across all company devices
Keeping your devices up to date is one of the simplest yet most effective ways to protect against cyber attacks. No matter what computers, phones, tablets or other devices your
organisation is using, it is important that you keep them up to date with the latest software updates and allow data backups at all times.
This will ensure that your business can recover quickly in the event of a cyber attack, hardware failure, or accidental data loss. Lastly, store backups in a separate and secure location, preferably offline or in the cloud to prevent unauthorised access.
6. Always stay one step ahead
Cybersecurity is constantly evolving, and attackers are always developing new techniques to engineer attacks, so create a proactive rather than reactive approach to security within your business. To stay ahead, regularly review your security measures, identify potential vulnerabilities, and update your security measures consistently.
This also involves having a strong incident response plan in case the worst happens. A solid incident response plan will minimise any potential damage and speed up recovery time. Create a step-by-step plan outlining how your organisation will detect, contain, and recover from any cyber incidents.
By anticipating potential threats and staying aware, you and your business can remain one step ahead with protecting yourself, your stakeholders and your customers as you continue to grow.
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