7 reasons why your data should already be secure…
By: Chris McQuade, Operations Manager
Data protection is a vital part of running a business. If you hold any personal information on your customers, vendors or employees, you’ll need to make sure the data is secure.
How exactly could your company be affected by unsecure data? If you have sensitive data that is valuable to your business (for example you’ve come up with an idea that could potentially make your business a lot of money) then you most certainly don’t want that information falling into the wrong hands.
Below are seven reasons why you should have already secured your company’s data. If you haven’t done so, these reasons should provide you with some incentive!
1. Protecting client’s data
One of the most important reasons for ensuring your company’s data is secured is to fully protect your customers information. Many companies now take personal information from their clients, such as their name, phone number, email etc. and customers will expect this information to stay secure.
If your data is unsecure, the personal information you collect could potentially be stolen for illegitimate means. So, it’s vital that access to this data is limited to the necessary people within your company. Alongside this, keeping your customers personal information secure will also help build a trustworthy relationship between you and them, helping you to maintain a reputable business.
2. GDPR regulation
Protecting client data isn’t just about maintaining their trust, it’s also the law. On May 25th, the EU’s new data protection law, GDPR, came into action.
In case you didn’t know… GDPR places a number of responsibilities on companies that hold personal information. The new legislation allows people who have shared their personal data with companies, to access their information when they wish. It also obliges companies to stick to stricter data management regulations and introduces fines for failing to adhere to these obligations. Have a look at our GDPR page if you’re interested in finding out more.
3. Protecting company information
On top of customer data, your company might also have sensitive information itself. Proposals, plans, apps, etc., are all things you’ll want to ensure are protected. If your company is developing a new app, for example, you won’t want it falling the wrong hands. Making sure your data is secure is the best way of preventing this.
4. Preventing malware
Malware comes in all shapes and sizes – and can have a substantial impact on your business if you become victim to it. Ransomware, for instance, will encrypt all your files and criminals will ask you to pay up in order to unlock them.
This will cost you both time and money, so it’s important to make sure you reduce the risk of it happening as much as possible. You can lower the chances of malware spreading for example by ensuring you keep your antivirus updated and by backing up your personal files. For more information on ransomware check out our ransomware explainer.
5. Maintaining company image
All these factors so far feed into maintaining your company’s reputation. The last thing you want, or need is a data breach. If a breach is made public knowledge, then this could affect your business’s reputation. Consumers are now very aware of the effects of these breaches, and if your company has a poor history of data management, then your customers are unlikely to stick with you and could potentially look elsewhere!
6. Decreasing down time
These factors also feed into increasing your company’s efficiency. As the old saying goes: ‘time is money’. If your company becomes the victim of malware or a data breach you’ll have to spend time dealing with the PR, removing the malware, and ensuring that it won’t happen again. All of this could be avoided if the proper precautions were in place beforehand.
Of course, no IT infrastructure is completely impenetrable, but at least you’ll know you’ve done your best if the worst does happen.
But what if the worst does happen? Some disasters are unavoidable and things like natural disasters and human error could mean that your entire infrastructure is ruined.
Luckily this isn’t the case if you back your data up. Our disaster recovery service allows businesses to have a fully restorable backup of their company data – giving them the peace of mind if a disaster were to strike.
7. Threats are becoming more common
Finally, it’s an unfortunate fact that these breaches and malware attacks are becoming more common. Where they used to only affect large organisations, and rarely at that, malware and data breaches now affect small, medium, and large businesses alike.
It’s important not to be complacent about securing your data. Your business being small, or in a niche industry unfortunately no longer means you’re immune to these threats.
We hope this blog post has given you a valuable insight into the importance of securing your company’s data, if you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to give us a call on 08452 41 41 55. We’re always happy to help!
| Name: |
Chris McQuade |
| Employment Start Date: |
Oct 2007 |
| Job Title: |
Operations Manager |
| Years in IT: |
19 |
Check out Chris on Social Media:
Registered in England No. 3082062
2-4 Northfield Point
Cunliffe Drive
Kettering
Northamptonshie
NN16 9QJ
08452 41 41 55
The post 7 reasons why you should have already secured your company’s data appeared first on PCS.
source
https://www.pcs-systems.com/secure-your-company-data/
