If you are one of those enthusiastic and adventurous entrepreneurs who are on the verge of launching your own online business, here's an important question for you: have you secured your start-up enough so that it can battle the security threats of today? If you haven't, now is the time to do so. In this blog, let's take a look at some of the security measures every entrepreneur should take to help ensure their start-up stays safe.
1. Benchmark Your Vulnerability
Even before you start thinking about enhancing your security, understand this first: no matter how hard you try to secure yourself, you – just like the rest of the digital world – will always remain vulnerable to various security threats evolving each day. No plan you come up with is going to make you 'foolproof' against being hacked. Therefore, what's important is to find out your security weak points, and make a note of them. This will help you become equipped for the worst-case scenarios if they were to become a reality. Above all, it will help you create a benchmark for vulnerabilities against which you can constantly work to improve the security of your start-up.
2. Educate Your Employees About Security
Start-ups tend to contain a lot of first-timers. Therefore, come up with a proper security program for teaching your employees how to ensure organization security by following the appropriate security measures. It wouldn't be such a bad idea make this program a part of the employee-induction plan itself. This way, they'll get to learn about cyber security even before they step into the organization.
3. Build a Cyber Security Community
Sometimes humans learn better when they are left to figure things out on their own rather than being spoon-fed. Therefore, how about starting a cyber security community within your organization and allowing employees to post whatever they learn? This will keep them motivated, enhance your organization security, and allow you to get to know what's happening in the cyber security world without having to do much.
4. Consult a Cyber Security Expert
The world of cyber security is tough to understand. Something that works well today may not work well tomorrow. This volatile situation is not going to change as long as hackers are around; therefore, consult a cyber security expert. Doing so can help you with two things. One, you'll be able to get an estimate of your start-up's security posture. Two, they'll be able to offer valuable advice that you can use to improve your start-up's cyber security.
5. Get the Basics Right
No matter how good looking a building might be, it wouldn't stand the test of time if its foundation is not good. The same applies for cyber security, as well. You may opt for the most sophisticated cyber security programs and consult many experts, but if you don't get the basics right – like using unique passwords, employing VPN connections, keeping applications up-to-date etc., – all would be lost. Being an entrepreneur is all about taking risks. But cyber security is one area where even entrepreneurs shouldn't want to experiment. Why? The losses can be too heavy to cope with. Focus on the cyber security of your start-up right now, so that you don't end up regretting it later. About the Author: Julia is a security geek with almost 5+ years of experience, writes on various topics pertaining to network security. Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed in this guest author article are solely those of the contributor, and do not necessarily reflect those of Tripwire, Inc.
