How Can I Protect My IT Systems? 20 Dec 2020
Your company’s online security is paramount; in order to protect your organisation’s electronic data and IT systems, there are a number of processes you can implement to guarantee its safety.
Data protection and a secure online presence will build your customer’s or client’s trust, as well as ensuring your company complies to legal obligations, such as GDPR and privacy laws. All IT data systems are at a level of risk from hacking, malware viruses, spam and scams. All these different corruption methods attack your hardware, allowing criminals and hackers access to steal your company’s private data.
However, your business can protect itself from these attacks. By defending your IT systems with data erasure, and out-sourcing the management and maintenance of your IT system and assets to a trustworthy source, you can significantly reduce the chances of your data being hacked.
Protecting your Systems from External Threats
Businesses can be targeted for their private data and intellectual property; malicious software, also known as malware, can enter your IT system through email attachments, files on removable storage devices, or visits to infected websites. This malware then cause worms, viruses, Trojans and spyware to spread into your company’s system, allowing the hackers to control your computer remotely.
Other threats can come in the form of phishing and pharming. Phishing is the term used to describe fraudulent emails that are ‘fishing’ for your company’s personal information; these emails claim to be from trusted sources; for example, a bank or recognised sender. Pharming occurs when hackers manage to infect your computer with codes that direct you or even your customers to a fake website. Both of these threats are often aiming to steal identities.
IT Protection Policies and Procedures
There are many steps your company can take to ensure its security is sufficient. Firstly, to protect your company website, it is essential that you can provide a secure socket layer (SSL) certificate. For customers and clients, this acts as additional reassurance that the site they are dealing with is secured and safer than an ordinary http address bar. The SSL is indicated by the ‘https’ address bar, and this secures the site from unauthorised parties from ‘listening in’ on their electronic conversations.
In addition, by backing-up data as well as the authentication process, and ensuring the use of passwords, can greatly enhance your IT security. Other steps your business can take to heighten your protection are installing anti-virus and anti-spyware software; this includes spam filters that can stop your computer from opening attachments and websites that have been corrupted by malware. And, ensuring that all of these systems are regularly updated and checked.
This being said, updating, implementing and reviewing all these security strategies and processes do not have to be an intimidating job. There are software options available to help businesses track their security systems and evaluate their effectiveness. Alternatively, you can outsource your IT management to an expert company.
How Global EMEA Can Help
At Global EMEA, we offer dedicated asset management services to help ensure your company’s IT assets and systems are secure. We have industry experts on hand to provide you with 24/7 or 9 to 5 support packages, as well as software, hardware and network guidance. From delivering the sourcing of IT infrastructures to the day-to-day management and security, at Global, we aim to provide the reliability your company requires in addition to the flexibility.
We can help you devise a bespoke package that meets your company’s requirements without costing the earth. Our experts will be on hand to reduce the c system’s costs by economising your organisation’s security system and supplying effective management to your business’ needs. If you would like to find out more about our Managed IT Services, call us on +44 (0) 844 251 0471, or you can send us an enquiry form on our website.