As time goes on, companies will continue to rely on data more and more. The benefits are clear: Data helps you make informed decisions, solve problems, understand company performance, improve processes, and understand consumers a lot clearer. Therefore, it is paramount that something is done to protect it; otherwise, it could fall into the wrong hands.

Data breaches can occur in many ways. Either it’s via an accidental insider, malicious insider, lost/stolen device, or malicious outside criminal. In any sense, companies have to put a plan into action to ensure the safety and security of their data. 

So take into account these five simple steps so you can minimise the effects of a data breach:

• Analyse and review the data at your disposal.

Understanding what you’re working with can ensure you aren’t taking any unnecessary risks. Customers’ names and addresses are obvious examples of data that you need to hold onto, but there may be a few things that you don’t need. For example, outdated information is not needed.

Streamline the info you have and think about how important it is to you. This is the data that will be driving the company forward, so it needs to be kept under wraps and away from any malevolent forces looking to take advantage of it. The other data can be deleted appropriately.

Then, in the future, you will know not to collect that same data as it will not be useful anymore.

• Minimise access to data and passwords.

One way of preventing a breach is by keeping your data and passwords under lock and key. Doing so can restrict the probability of human error. If one or two people, who are trusted, were to have access rather than 20, it would be much harder for hackers to bypass the system. As an extra barrier, it would be best to use two-factor authentication to protect passwords further.

The insider threats mentioned above will have less of a chance to cause a breach as a result. Also, look to change passwords every once in a while to keep ahead of the curve. This will make it even harder for hackers to get in through the system.

• Incorporate encrypted data to protect customers.

Encrypting data involves converting human-readable plaintext into incomprehensible text. That would mean changing readable data into a random format so that outsiders cannot decipher it. Then a cryptographic key can be used to access the data if and when you need it. This method helps set up another barrier for hackers to pass if they even get to this stage. And, without the unique key, they will not be able to get in and steal the data at all. Reliable software with strong encryption and networking hardware is vital to this being the case. If they do happen to get in, they won’t be able to find much to steal as they cannot access it.

• Form a plan to deal with data breaches.

After putting into place all the above steps to deter hackers from gaining access to your system, you will still need to have a plan in place just in case they can bypass each stage.

Responding to a breach has to be immediate. You need to know what to do and how to do it so that the fallout is minimal. If you are breached, you could stand to lose a lot of money and customers. Cover every angle and think about every possibility that could happen. This will determine whether you are successful or not in the event of a data breach.

Leave this for too long and suffer the consequences.

• Make full use of WipeDrive’s products.

When it comes to disposing of data, simply deleting your business’ files or performing a factory reset on your devices is no longer enough to guarantee its complete removal. But, with the all-new WipeDrive 9.7, you will be 100% sure that all your unwanted data is entirely gone forever!

WipeDrive can successfully delete all the data on your hard drive, allowing you to sell up if needed or even remove current infections on the device. In addition, the data can never be recovered again, meaning hackers have much less of a chance to steal your data than they previously had before.

Please note, however, that WipeDrive is so good that you will never be able to get your data back. So be sure to backup anything you would like to restore, if necessary. If you only want to remove your data while leaving the operating system and programs intact, try out SystemSaver instead.

To find out more, visit our website today! Alternatively, give us a call on 0345 340 3105 to speak directly to our team or fill out an enquiry form. We look forward to hearing from you and welcome any potential questions you may have.