Threats to the security of a company’s network may harm any size firm. Since hackers and other cybercriminals are always looking for new ways to exploit network flaws, businesses must take key steps to protect both their data and their infrastructure (especially applications). In this article, we’ll go over some of the best practices for keeping your network secure.
Enhance Access Control
Controlling who may enter an entity is an important part of any security system. Poor access control exposes your data and systems to hacking and other forms of attack.
Use a strong password management system to supplement current access control techniques. Your password must include a mix of capital and lowercase letters, numerals, and special characters. In addition, you should update any default passwords regularly.
Keep Your Software Up to Date
Threat actors intending to do damage are always hunting for vulnerabilities in company networks to exploit. As a result, developers of software programs often provide new updates to their software to address any vulnerabilities that may have been detected.
Unfortunately, the great majority of businesses do not implement these entirely free security updates. They have not upgraded to more current versions since it is easier for them to utilize the software program as required rather than taking it offline for a lengthy period to do software upgrades.
Use Encryption and Authentication
Another key step to take to secure your network is to use encryption and authentication. Encryption is the process of converting data into a coded format that only those with the decryption key can read. Authentication is the process of authenticating the identity of persons, devices, or programs attempting to enter your network. Authentication may be done manually or automatically. Using authentication and encryption, you may safeguard your network against unauthorized access, data theft, and manipulation.
Conduct User and Staff Awareness Training
Internal attacks are becoming a bigger problem for network security. Most employees who represent a threat from inside a corporation are not dishonest or willfully attempt to do damage; rather, they are careless or uninformed of adequate security measures. Employees are the easiest targets for cybercriminals to exploit through phishing emails. They may, however, be effective defensives if they are taught cybersecurity practices and motivated to avoid attacks with the right incentives.
Organizations may educate their employees about cybersecurity concepts, compliance requirements, and security regulations, such as the need for secure passwords, by implementing a cyber awareness training course, especially when it comes to SD-WAN technologies.
Focus on Physical Security
The bulk of policies created to deal with cyber dangers in businesses are completely unconcerned with their physical locations, instead focusing on the digital characteristics of such threats. Conduct a comprehensive security audit to determine if your critical infrastructure is secure against possible security attacks. In addition, you should evaluate your data protection strategy to see whether it includes data disposal methods.
Consider the possibility that hackers are unable to obtain access to your internet systems, but you nevertheless suffer a data breach because an unauthorized person got access to your physical premises and rifled through your files.
Monitor Network Activities
Monitoring network activity is critical for detecting potential attacks in real-time, reacting effectively to these threats, and safeguarding your company’s network. You will be able to detect any anomalies or suspicious actions if you keep a close eye on the traffic on your network. This might be a sign of a network security breach or an attempt to obtain unauthorized access to the computer system. You may use monitoring tools to monitor network activity, including traffic entering and exiting the network, to spot patterns of conduct that may indicate a possible security issue, such as unusual user behaviour.
Plan for Disaster Recovery
The creation of a disaster recovery plan (DRP) is critical to successfully defending against cyberattacks. Starting with ensuring the continuity of your company’s activities, your approach should next manage data protection, offshore backups, system reconstitution, and logs. It is critical to remember that a DRP is not a static document; rather, it should be reviewed and updated frequently. Incorporating periodic reviews into your entire approach to addressing cybersecurity risks might help you detect any gaps.
Conclusion
By following these guidelines, you can help mitigate the network security risk that your business faces. It is crucial to realize, however, that no technique can guarantee complete security. There is always the chance of being a victim of a cyberattack. The most effective method to safeguard your company against an assault is to be well organized and prepared and to have a solid strategy in place for how to react in such a case.
