How to prevent cyber attacks
Category:Cyber Security
Everyone knows the internet is the best resource when it comes to looking up information, quick communication and being able to find things from all over the world.
But with the great tool like the internet, there is high risk of data breach and privacy risk from cyber criminals attacking your business network.
A malicious website you or someone in your organization visits can download a script or code that can open backdoor to a hacker, who can capture and see everything on your computer.
Once your system is compromised, a hacker can:
- Copy your confidential business data
- Launch a ransomware attack and lock all your files, attacker then ask for payment to unlock your files
- Execute additional codes to attack another system
- See everything on your network
- Capture everything you typed on keyboard (passwords you type)
- Run services and open ports to hack systems inside and outside your organization
- Send spam out of your network
- Launch DDoS attack to and from your network – which makes network resource unavailable to its intended users by disrupting services
Cyber attack can happen by phishing email, vulnerable machine, IoT device or simply visiting a website. The website you visit might look legit, but it can be a scam website where you type in your network user id and real password but, it is stealing your credentials and sending information to a hacker. With that information they can gain access to your network.
How to prevent cyber attacks?
- Update your computers regularly
- Upgrade your computers and devices to supported versions
- Isolate older systems you cannot update or upgrade, prevent them from becoming security threat to entire network
- Keep your Anti-Virus solution updated, scan computers regularly and monitor
- Secure your mainstream servers by creating security policies
- Secure your network shares, only permit who needs access to the data
- Turn on windows firewall
- Have a Network Firewall device that sits between your internet service provider and your business network, this can help prevent most external network attacks
- Secure your network equipment and physical access
- Secure wireless network
- Create separate guest wireless network for personal IoT devices (personal cell phones, tables)
- Test network vulnerabilities on local area network and wide area network
- Use VPN to remotely access resources, allow only monitored and company provided computers to access remotely
- Train your organization about not to visit unknows sites and open unknown emails
- Change your passwords right away if you believe it has been compromised or by data breach
- Backup your business data regularly and save copy of your data offsite
- Monitor your network infrastructure regularly and make changes to create safe and secure network
