Cybersecurity has been a significant concern over the past decade. Trillions of dollars have been lost through cybercrime, businesses have been shut down, and hackers have done all types of possible damage. Companies and individuals are urged to remain focused on protecting their data. While data mining has become a popular process to realize the benefits of big data, it has some limitations when it comes to the privacy of data and security. Synthetic data generation, data encryption, and cloud permissions are among the strategies that have been employed to try to ensure that data remains protected.
Here is more that you need to do to protect your company from the threat of cybersecurity.
- Encrypt your data
Hackers are taking advantage of data traveling across the internet, web pages, and so on. To prevent them from getting their hands on your data, encrypt it. Encryption algorithms work by making data unreadable to persons who do not have the decryption key. In case a hacker successfully launches an attack and gets your files as they are being transferred on the internet, it will be useless to them. Fortunately, there are tons of software in the market that you can use to encrypt your information.
- Cloud permissions control
Human error is one of the biggest causes of data breaches. When handling information on the cloud, there is a chance that errors will take place, exposing data to hackers. Allocating permissions for managing various actions on files should be restricted. The higher the number of employees handling the data, the higher the likelihood of compromising security. Cloud control permissions should include read/write permissions and access to accounts. This will reduce errors and increase accountability and responsibility.
- Do regular updates
The one mistake that people make is ignoring the update notifications, particularly of security patches. While your IT team might understand its importance, the rest of your workforce may not understand it. It is, therefore, vital to automate software updates.
Hackers use outdated software as entry points to your network. Outdated software contains vulnerabilities that can be taken advantage of. Updates come with patches that cover security holes protecting your network.
Antivirus software updates are particularly important as it gives your antivirus the power to fight even the new malware.
- Use synthetic data
Whenever possible, use synthetic data when sharing data across geographical boundaries, organizational silos or accessing the cloud. As its name suggests, synthetic data is completely artificial, but it’s based on the curves and patterns of customer behavior found in your raw data. Synthetic data generators learn from your raw data and then create realistic, but completely synthetic data that can be used more securely.
- Do regular backups
What if you have all the network security strategies in place but still hackers attack successfully? You need to be ready for anything. Downtime caused by ransomare can attract significant losses. However, when you have a copy of the data on-site or offsite, your business will remain operational even after an attack. It will save you a lot of headaches.
Data security should be given attention in organizations. Data is valuable, and hackers will do anything to steal it. Watch out for new and innovative ways that you can keep your information protected. You can consult IT experts to help you identify any existing security holes and advise you on how you can beef up your security.
