Avoiding Growing Cybercrime Risks for People and Companies

If you’re breathing right now, you are on the internet. You will likely still be on the internet if you are still breathing after the 3-minute read. If you wouldn’t go hiking without a map or sailing without a compass, then you shouldn’t surf the internet without at least a minimal understanding of the threats lurking in the cybersphere.  

Much of the rise in cybercrime can be attributed to the pandemic. People spent more time online than ever, and companies had to contend with the work-from-home culture.  

With employees working from home or cafes, businesses lose control over their company’s data flow and employee internet surfing. Monitoring is one thing; employees accessing different networks from who-knows-where is another. 

As a user of the internet, these are the bare minimum cybersecurity tips you should follow and habituate to the best of your abilities: 

• Realize that it happens to everyone and could happen to you 
• Practice good password management. 101*U$e P@$$wOrdz L1kE T#1$*010 
• Utilize Firewalls, they can be lifesavers in case of a misclick 
• Be careful clicking on attachments and never click a link before checking it 
• Don’t input any sensitive information like financial data on other people’s devices 
• Ensure all your devices are patched and updated with the latest 
• Be careful who’s flash drives and external hard drives and smartphones you plugin 
• Keep your social media private, and watch what you share 

If you are a business owner, it is worth every penny investing in educating your employees – along with a VPN and firewall in case that fails.  

Most people aren’t aware of just how much control they have over their safety online. Most major malware attacks happen through phishing, spear-phishing included. Anyone can be part of a broad net phishing attack, say in the event of a phishing email; if the wrong link is clicked, you could be the one letting a malicious actor into your company. 

The other side of the coin, spear-phishing, happens when a specific person, or persons, are targeted. A malicious actor could personalize a message crafted by browsing your social media, seeing what makes you tick, and shooting his shot.  

And don’t think that just because you aren’t the most highly ranking person in your company, then you wouldn’t be a target. A back door is a back door, no matter the size. 

The damage can go far beyond just financial for a company or business. 

• Theft or destruction of data 
• lost productivity 
• disruption to company operations 
• reputational harm 

These are all possible results that can damage a company in the long term, a result of poor employee cybercrime and cyber security, and lacking cyber security measures on the part of the company. 

Nothing beats an aware and awake team of employees who are familiar with cybercrime and information security risks and precautions. Even so, ensure all company systems are shipshape and regularly patched and updated.