The Simply Smarter Blog

Small businesses are especially vulnerable when they lack the technology and IT support needed to effectively mitigate and recover from cyberattacks. Limited resources can leave organizations more exposed to cyber threats, and as business processes continue to digitize and employees work remotely, cybercriminals grow increasingly sophisticated. Implementing proper defenses to protect against security breaches is essential. Here are some practical tips to help small businesses strengthen cybersecurity and reduce the risk of becoming a victim.

Remote and flexible work setups are a common part of the modern workplace. Combining remote and in-person work can benefit everyone by offering flexibility and the opportunity to tailor work environments to different tasks. Organizations continue to refine the balance between in-office and remote work to meet operational and employee needs.

Remote and in-office environments each have unique IT security considerations that organizations need to manage. With cyber threats continuing to grow in frequency and sophistication, it’s critical for organizations to ensure that both their own devices and those of their employees are fully secure to reduce the risk of an attack.

Every morning, you wake up, go through your routine, and start your day at the office or home workspace. When you log into your computer and check your email, you might notice that essential messages, such as an RFP you’re expecting, an invoice, or important notes from vendors and partners, have landed in your spam folder. You might ask yourself, “how did these end up here?” Missing these emails is not only frustrating, but it can also affect your business operations and workflow.

Cybersecurity awareness is essential year-round. Data breaches continue to have a significant financial impact on organizations worldwide, highlighting the importance of strong cybersecurity.

If your organization isn’t taking security seriously, it’s only a matter of time before you become a target. Every device on your network and every person with access to those devices is a potential attack vector — and yes, that includes copiers and multifunction printers (MFPs).

Cybercrime is increasingly targeting businesses of all sizes, with attackers often demanding ransom payments in Bitcoin due to its anonymity and lack of regulation. Bitcoin allows cybercriminals to receive funds without a bank account, transfer money quickly and anonymously, and move funds across multiple wallets to avoid detection. To protect against ransomware and other cyber threats, businesses should implement multi-layer security, maintain regular backups, and actively monitor for suspicious activity.

Just picture this— you’re a new employee diligently working, and out of the blue, your CEO e-mails you, asking for 10 Amazon gift cards. She says it’s for an important project she’s working on and she needs the gift cards ASAP! The pressure is on and you take a break from your hectic to-do list, and begin ordering the gift cards, until you realize… the person emailing is not your boss after all, but rather, a sneaky cybercriminal. And just like that, you are the newest victim of a phishing scam. How mortifying, right? Well luckily, there are steps that can be taken in order to avoid such embarrassing catastrophes.

As employees continue to do their jobs efficiently and effectively from remote locations, some companies are beginning to view the work-from-home model as longer-term, while others have embraced a hybrid model in which employees split time between home and office. While there are many benefits to remote work for both employer and employee, there are some downsides as well – and one of those is the need to provide IT services to a remote workforce. 

It is no secret that today increased security threats, such as phishing or ransomware attacks, are a very real concern. Almost all devices are prone to cybersecurity threats and office printers and multifunction devices (MFPs) are no exception.

There are several steps businesses can take to help ensure their network and all connected devices are secure. We’ve compiled a list of seven tips to help prevent your business from falling victim to cybersecurity threats.

Cyberattacks can leave small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) exposed and vulnerable to going out of business. To better understand industry concerns on this topic, Sharp commissioned a cybersecurity study of 250 North American SMBs with Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG). The results found that many SMBs are struggling to protect themselves. Almost half of all respondents said that their business had been the victim of multiple security incidents (averaging three) in the last year. While some of these incidents can be attributed to human error, many took place because the organization had a smaller IT team. In fact, 85% of SMBs surveyed said they have, at most, one dedicated security professional on their team.