[BreachExchange] 7 Most Common Cybersecurity Mistakes To Avoid

[Destry Winant]

http://complianceandethics.org/7-most-common-cybersecurity-mistakes-to-avoid/

Most website owners pay close attention to various factors affecting
their website`s popularity and conversions but leave little to no room
for thinking about their cybersecurity. While it may be completely
unimportant when you just want to build an audience and drive
conversions, what you have to understand is that all of the audience
you have taken the time to build could go away instantly if a breach
happens.

People don`t trust online payments and they don’t think it’s very safe
as it is – a cyber attack could completely scare them away.

This is not the only reason to keep your site safe, though. If a
hacker attacks your website, they could reach the sensitive user data
as well as your personal information, your vendor’s information and so
on. Many people could get hurt if you disregard this issue.

Still, so many website owners fail to consider it more seriously. If
you want to stop being one of them, here are some mistakes you should
start avoiding right away.

Thinking it won’t happen to you

The one thing people absolutely have to understand is that hackers are
not particularly picky. If they see an opportunity with your site,
they are going to take it, no matter what. So, thinking that they
won`t reach you is a huge mistake.

Before you know it, your site could be taken away from you, stripped
of an audience or who knows what else. It’s better to take every
precaution available to you and think that it definitely will happen
than to ignore the issue completely.

Not monitoring

If you want to prevent a cyber attack, the best thing you can do is
conduct constant monitoring of your website. “If you notice any
suspicious actions like too many spam comments or a huge number of
failed login attempts, you can take precautions instantly and be aware
of what’s going on in minutes. This can prove to be of tremendous
value, especially if you use this opportunity to call in the
professionals rather than trying to deal with it yourself”, – explains
David Sullivan, a Data Security Manager at Stateofwriting and
Boomessays.

Not learning the basics

Often, it can be the simple things that harm you – something like a
123456 password. To avoid having this as your problem, pay some
attention to the basics as well. People neglect to do this because
they think that hackers will try to breach their website in some
mysterious, overly complex way. Then they focus solely on those
things, trying to prevent huge breaches when even a small amount of
spam or a weak password could be the issue. Check everything top to
bottom.

Failing to locate data

Your data is your company’s lifeblood. In order to keep it safe, you
need to locate it together with its paths. This cannot be overstated
enough. If you truly want to avoid serious issues, protect your data
more than anything. Not only does it hold your customers` information
but it also holds your own and the information of your vendors and
many other people or organizations that have come into contact with
your own over time.

Not testing the security

If you want to know how something will work when you are not watching,
test it. Especially nowadays when we have internet of things, mobile
devices and so many things can come in harm’s way, it`s best to stress
test everything. You can use both the automated vulnerability testing
and deep-dive penetration testing for this as both will come in handy
at certain points.

Ignoring training

Your staff could very well be the key to your web security. However,
if you don’t train them, they will just watch as things unfold in
front of them. To avoid making this mistake, train them to notice
things that can be a hint to something bigger happening or a breach
happening. This way, they will be able to help you and prevent
anything bad from happening.

Not assessing vendor risks

Some of the most notorious attacks on websites and businesses happened
through the vendors. The hacker breaches the vendor site in order to
get information on your site and hack your website that way.
“Resisting vendor risk assessment can be very harmful to your
business. Protect yourself and your customers by thinking about the
risk your vendors are to you. If you are protecting them by protecting
your website, they should also protect you by protecting themselves”,
– says Janet McClure, a Technical writer at Essayroo and Academized.

Cybersecurity is a serious issue that shouldn’t be left without
attention. Hopefully, you`ll be able to take some valuable insights
into what might happen if you neglect your security and how to avoid
it.