10 Common Cybersecurity Issues Businesses Face

We see the headlines too often — another company's information systems have been breached and sensitive data has been stolen.  Sony, Anthem, Home Depot, Yahoo, Target, and  others are recent examples that come to mind.  If these massive companies with their full scale technology teams can be exploited, it can make a business owner wonder: “How secure is my businesses?”

Cybersecurity: A Growing Challenge
Industry experts are predicting that the challenge of cybersecurity is likely to get worse, and that the damages will become even more devastating.  When this happens, the company image and credibility is damaged, loss of customers, huge financial impact, and typically the CEO and CIO are fired.  In the case of a small business, most can’t endure the damage and are ruined.  

So, why does this serious problem continue? How can it be avoided?  

Most companies are not taking the right approach to cybersecurity.

Addressing Your Company's Cybersecurity
To address your cybersecurity the right way, you need to properly assess your vulnerabilities and capabilities.  Here are 10 common cybersecurity issues businesses face:

1. Inadequate Assessments: Too many businesses conduct assessments that are not comprehensive, and don’t address the most pressing threats.
2. Inadequate employee training:   Your employees are the front line of your cybersecurity and are often the most vulnerable point.  Cybersecurity experts agree that the best cybersecurity investment you can make is better employee cybersecurity training.
3. Putting too much faith in Paper Accreditation: Paper Accreditation doesn't equal real-world security:   Most of them grossly miss the mark and give a false sense of security.
4. Misinformed decision-makers:   To find the issues, decision-makers need guidance from an unbiased, credible, cybersecurity expert.
5. Forgetting hackers don't play fair:   Today, hackers are constantly coming up with new techniques to trick employees into unknowingly provide the hacker access.
6. Hackers have a major advantage:  Hackers only have to find ONE vulnerability in order to gain access to your systems and data.  You have to protect the entire environment against all potential vulnerabilities.
7. Hiring a cybersecurity company without research:  It’s important for companies to do heavy research and hire the right cybersecurity expert with hands-on, real-world experience that's prepared them to know the right questions and the right follow-up questions to ask specifically for your company.
8. Being held up by cost concerns:  A comprehensive cybersecurity assessment can be very affordable, if you select the right firm.  When you consider the staggering cost of being hacked, the cost of a cybersecurity assessment is a very wise investment.
9. Thinking cybersecurity is only an IT problem: Cybersecurity is a company-wide responsibility.  The Board of Directors, the CEO, and everyone in the organization must be properly educated, prepared, responsible, and focused on cybersecurity.
10. Not putting in the time: Take time to craft the right, comprehensive plan, and sustain your cybersecurity focus:  Your organization is counting on it!

Cybersecurity is vital for your future, and doing it the right way makes all the difference.   ​