How to Prevent Data Breaches and Why They Happen
The world keeps adapting to the online aspect of life day by day. Companies now have to worry about their cybersecurity to protect their interest and the safety of customer data. Data breaches are increasing rapidly, and no one is safe, especially some of the industry’s most prominent companies. It is vital to have a grasp on how to prevent data breaches.
What Is a Data Breach?
When talking about a data breach, it consists of the theft of information from a system without proper authorization from its owner. A data breach can affect companies of various caliber, and such stolen data might contain sensitive and highly confidential information. Data that includes credit card numbers, company secrets, and customer data.
Finally, a data breach can have reputation effects. Customers might feel unsafe and betrayed by the company. A data breach can also have substantial financial consequences, like the T-Mobile breach that cost the company 350 million dollars in losses.
Why Data Breaches Happen
Before we can look at how companies can prevent data breaches, we need to know why they happen in the first place.
Malware Attacks
Firstly, a cyber attacker can buy malicious software, find a target with a vulnerable system and plant the malware and start collecting data and vital information. It sounds too simple, and sometimes it is like what happened to The Dubai Moorfields Eye Hospital, which was attacked by ransomware, a type of malware, by the group AvosLocker. The reward of malware attacks depends on the style used; in that case, the criminals were aiming for financial compensation.
Application Weak Points
Every piece of software contains a technical flaw or a crack that criminals can use in various ways. That’s why the companies who oversee the applications regularly scan for and fix exploits before cybercriminals find their way to abuse them.
The software developer always keeps a patch on stand-by so companies can have it ready to install whenever a vulnerability needs to be fixed. Companies need to do this immediately as soon as they find a vulnerability since thieves will be actively searching for companies that are still vulnerable to the threat now that they are aware of the security breaches. Careem fell victim to this. The Dubai uber-like startup faced a data breach via an app vulnerability.
Predictable and Weak Credentials
Stolen passwords are one of the simplest and most common causes of data breaches. Far too many people rely on predictable phrases like ‘Password1’ and ‘123456’, meaning cyber criminals don’t even need to break a sweat to access sensitive information.
A stolen password is the most common and simple way to cause a data breach. Many people use predictable passwords in the hopes of not forgetting them or even writing them down to organize them. Cybercriminals won’t even have to hack or make any efforts when they can easily access such information.
Hackers can moderately crack secure passwords with the help of computer programs that go through millions of the most used credentials. It would help if you thought hard to create something unique and complex whenever you choose your password, making it hard to crack.
How to Prevent Data Breaches
Firstly, you can do the exact opposite of what causes a data breach. Create stronger passwords, check for weak points, update regularly, and educate yourself on malware. Train your employees. Lots of data breaches start with a small error from an employee. Here is a couple of headers to further prevent data breach in a company.
Develop a Response Plan
Be ready. There is no such thing as being too prepared, especially when there are so many criminals. People often think that it wont happen to them, which makes them think that they won’t face such a breach. What if it did? Very few companies have a direct, impactful plan ready in case of a data breach. Don’t be one of those companies. Prepare yourself. In case of a breach, be transparent with your employee so they can understand the scale of the emergency. Calculate your potential losses so you start trying to recuperate. Finally, if it happens, learn from your mistake so you can be sure you won’t let it happen again,
Limit Access to Critical Data
Every employee can access data from a laptop in the era of computers. Make sure to limit access to certain employees of certain positions. This will ensure that the number of people accessing vital information is manageable. Better monitored data access will limit errors and make it easier to contain a data breach if it happens.
Expert IT Team
The best part is, if you don’t know how to protect yourself or how to prevent data breaches, you can hire people who do. Hackers are an ever-looming threat that might even outlive your company. Investing in a strong, capable IT team is never a bad investment. Hire cyber security specialists and be transparent with them. Set clear goals and expectations, and you’ll be ready.
Final thoughts
Data breaches are a threat every company or even individual will have to worry about. Giant companies fall prey to malicious hackers who expose customers’ data and breach their privacy. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Educating yourself on the subject won’t erase the cyberthreat of data breaches, but it will make it harder to fall victim. The further you know about it, the harder it is to fall for it, and if you still need help, reach out to a professional. Many capable IT specialists are seeking employment. You will be solving your issue while opening the door of opportunity for others.
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