With more people than ever going online and more firms looking to do business over the internet, this is making it a more attractive environment than ever for hackers and online fraudsters. As the amount of malware and spam being created continues to rise, it’s vital that businesses take steps to protect themselves throughout their network, including their data centers. If you ignore this area, you could be putting your entire business at risk, as hacking attacks and malware could knock a business offline.
However, it seems this message isn’t getting through to many businesses. A study by security firm Kaspersky has found a third of companies haven’t even deployed antivirus software across their network, despite this being one of the most fundamental things you can do you guard against malware. Research by the firm also found 19% of small enterprises and 15% of larger companies consider themselves to be ‘reactive’ when it comes to the security of their networks and websites.
This means they only look at improving security after a breach has occurred. Of course, by this time, it’s often too late and as 63% of small businesses have faced malware within their networks in the last year, it’s important for firms to be proactive. Kaspersky said: “These findings demonstrate that SMBs (small and medium-sized businesses) are at risk due to poor IT security. It’s essential to change attitudes towards this risk and enhance protection levels in order to keep businesses safe”.
By ensuring robust solutions are in place before there is a problem, you can be confident that your servers are well-protected against external attacks that could otherwise be very costly. Antivirus software needs to play a key role in this, but it’s not the only thing you can do to ensure your network isn’t vulnerable to attacks. 62% of firms polled by Kaspersky use a patch management system to identify and update potentially vulnerable applications, while encryption of sensitive files and infrastructure improvements might also be valuable steps.