Scammers: People have been ripping each other off since the dawn of time, whether out of desperation or greed, it can often be hard to understand why people do such things. Regardless of the motivation, it’s important to be able to protect yourself and those around you from falling for such things, especially during this time of economic hardship. Scams have developed concurrently with technology and can be much more nuanced today than ever before, so having systems in place to prevent cyber-attacks and privacy breaches has become a must for most businesses big or small.
An amusing yet relevant analogy for scammers nowadays is that they are like vampires in that they must be invited in. Often they will do so by appearing as a friend, coworker, staff member, or some sort of business or institute that you work alongside. Although just because they have come through the door doesn’t mean they should be able to easily access your stuff, having layers of security can further ensure your protection against your privacy or data being accessed.
Continuing with the theme of your business being like home, here’s a look at how you can increase the security of the different aspects through utilizing tech support Tacoma or wherever you’re located in Washington.
Front Door
With security in mind, you may think that the most important feature of a front door is being able to lock it. Although that is secondary to the ease of access at which the appropriate people should enter the home. The same applies to your general security systems both online and off, as your staff should find no problem in entering the work building or logging into the work network whether near or far.
Keys or Codes
To make it easy for people to get in and out of our homes, we will either utilize keys or a code on the entrance with a pin known only to those who are meant to enter. There are several ways you can go about doing this with your general security system:
- Set up a secure network server that has strong firewall systems but recognizes the computers, laptops, or phones of staff members
- Only allow staff to utilize laptops and computers which are authorized to access the main systems, with strong passwords or even fingerprint scanning technology set up for them
- Have a rotating pin code or password system which changes regularly and is telecommunicated to staff through a secure medium or only in-person
Utilizing one or more of these methods can ensure that not just anyone can come sauntering into your business, but will still allow your staff to easily achieve their tasks.
Mailbox
If the front door is our general security system, then the mailbox is our telecommunications security. If you’ve ever had mail stolen out of your mailbox before then you’ll know this issue goes beyond a simple invasion of privacy, often our mail contains sensitive information about ourselves or our business activities. The same applies for business telecommunications on an exponential level, where client’s, staff’s and owner’s financial information is often shared with presumed privacy.
Locked Letterbox
The equivalent of bolting your mailbox in terms of security would be to implement some sort of email encryption. Regardless of whether the information in your emails is private or not, any access to your email account can allow people to use your legitimate profile and email address to scam your clients.
Setting up email encryption is often beyond the abilities of even the most confident computer user, so be sure to seek tech support Tacoma or wherever you are in Washington State.
Drawers and Cupboards
Finally, your belongings and possessions which hold more value in your hands than anyone elses. Although that’s not to say that they’re worthless though, it doesn’t take the most intelligent thief to know that some things have intrinsic value. When it comes to your business, these belongings could be digital files which are relevant to your industry, information about clients, or anything which, as previously stated, holds more value in your posession than in others.
Safe in the Sky
Cloud storage has become the most heavily relied upon form of storage in recent years, and for good reason. It allows people to access their files from anywhere at anytime, and cuts back on the necessity to purchase various hard drives, flash drives, and other forms of physical storage.
These forms of physical storage are also a lot more susceptible to being physically stolen, so be sure to find a provider of tech support Tacoma or nearby who can help set you up with an encrypted cloud storage.
Etiquette
The final factor in the successful security of any business is the protocol and etiquette that you and your staff have around sensitive information. Be sure to talk to the IT service provider you decide to go with about what kind of etiquette will maximize the security they’ve helped you enstate.