After numerous data breaches over the last couple of years, security focus is at an all-time high. Now is the time to clarify your plan to stop cyber threats and protect your business and customer data.

Source: Forbes.com

This year is a year of security focus, as companies look at ways to protect themselves from falling victim to cyberattacks and start to take action to secure their business from these threats. By having a plan in place that thwarts cyberthreats, you can protect your business from a data breach, keeping your customer data secure with the technological protocols of your company.

From ensuring proper employee training to having a restrictive permission policy in place or hiring a cybersecurity expert to help you out, here are some of the most important steps businesses should take to protect against a major data breach, according to seven members of Forbes Finance Council.

1. Bring in a cybersecurity specialist.

Educate your firm on past data breaches by bringing in a cybersecurity specialist to speak about best practices and how to keep security top of mind.

Source: travelers.com

A data breach could turn into a catastrophic event for any company, especially for small businesses that may not be prepared for this emerging threat. The 2015 Symantec Internet Security Threat Report found that 60% of all targeted attacks struck small- to mid-sized companies. As a business owner or an employee, there are a number of preventive steps you can take to help keep your company’s data secure. The most important place to start is to know the common causes of data breaches and how to avoid them before the damage is done.

You may think data breaches are mainly caused by outsiders hacking into the system. While that scenario is the one that makes headlines in the media, the fact is that employee error, such as a lost or stolen computer or mobile device, or downloading malicious software, can also lead to data loss or a data breach incident. Train your employees to better understand these risks to help protect your company’s data.

Following are some safety steps, including how to help protect your workspace, stay safer when receiving email and create strong passwords.

1. Protect Data at Your Work Space

If you step away from your desk while you are in the middle of a project that includes sensitive business information, take some precautions to protect company data from visitors or others who are not authorized to see that information. Remember these simple tips for keeping your workspaces secure.

Source: business.com

In-house IT helpdesks, while generally more familiar with the ins-and-outs of the company’s IT set-up and systems, usually require a hefty sum to start and maintain.

This would mean added costs due to hiring and training IT experts, which is a rather heavy load for small to mid-sized enterprises (SMEs).

For people with small to mid-sized businesses, outsourced IT support is generally more cost-effective due to having staff trained to handle a wide variety of IT problems.

This helps businesses focus on their niche instead of trying to fiddle with things outside their field of expertise. That being said, if you’re considering switching to an outsourced IT support company, here are a number of benefits you can expect from making that decision:

1. Better Cost Management

With start-ups and SMEs attempting to cut back costs, a more consistent budget allotted for an outsourced IT support team becomes more favorable compared to the volatility of expenses incurred from an in-house IT support team.

An outsourced IT support team, on the other hand, apart from being able to solve IT-related problems quicker, can also give you a more consistent and controlled monthly expense that only increases as your company grows.

Source: Forbes.com

For every business there comes a time when it needs to consider the benefit of outsourcing. Knowing when to outsource your IT operations can be a challenge, which is why 14 members of Forbes Technology Council weighed in on when it’s a good time for your business to do so.

1. When You Understand The Economics Of Your Business

The decision to outsource IT goes beyond the costs of doing so versus the costs of keeping it internal. You have to understand your business and how it generates value.

Source: entrepreneur.com

Being ready for a potential cyber attack is no longer optional. The number of cyber attacks continues to grow as hackers are on a mission to steal data. If you do not have a plan in place then you are at greater risk of being targeted.

Know the risks. Properly protecting your company from a cyber-attack starts with a well-rounded understanding of the internal and external vulnerabilities your business faces when it comes to a hacker.

Source: entrepreneur.com

There are many reasons why business is migrating to the cloud. Things like ease of scalability, increased security and ease of data recovery make sense to any business model.

Ransomware Comes in many flavors. This one comes after your cryptocurrency. Want to know what a digital pickpocket looks like? Check out this article from ZDNet.

Source: zdnet.com

An old form of ransomware has been repurposed to steal Bitcoin by altering the addresses of wallets and redirecting payments into accounts owned by the attacker.

Source: triblive.com

Ransomware scams may attack a computer near you soon, the FBI warned Monday. Properly protecting your company involves knowing the risks and staying informed.