You could have great services and products and some amazing employees, but if you don’t have some pretty strong safeguards around your business – all of that will be for naught.
Between the “In Real Life” bad people, the cyber bad actors, and random horrible things like fires or floods, you really need to have a plan to keep yourself covered from every angle. Let’s make your business impenetrable!
Invest in a Safe
Oldies but goodies—the most common way to secure assets requires that you have a safe! Keep cash, sensitive documents, and inventory completely safe within the confines of a gargantuan safe. Be sure to choose a suitable safe wisely based on size, locking mechanism, and weight. If your safe is basically a paperweight, it will be easy for a burglar to get their hands on. Opt for a fireproof safe to make sure your vital documents don’t go up in smoke…literally. Keep the most valuable pieces of information right where it belongs!
Implement Cybersecurity Measures
Our tech-savvy world requires us to have protection, not just in the real world. Cybersecurity is your best friend. Splurge on superior firewalls, antivirus software, and encryption software to add extra layers of protection. Educate your employees about what phishing means and how to recognize different sites that might not be the real deal. Make sure they’re using strong, unique passwords for any account hosted in a work capacity. Additionally, be sure to keep all software up to date!
Create an Emergency Plan
It’s always a great idea to have an emergency response plan on hand. No, it’s a necessity! Whether it’s an HR nightmare, data breach, or even a natural disaster, your business needs to have a plan in place on how to handle and mitigate the damage. Share this plan with your company and have consistent drills throughout the year. This will help ensure everyone knows the protocol in the event of an emergency.
Secure Access to Your Premises
Maintain control over who can and cannot access your business. Install access control systems like key cards, biometric scanners, and even keypad access points. These systems don’t just prevent illegal access; you can also see who enters and exits the building and when they do so. Set up security cameras inside and out to constantly keep an eye on the comings and goings of your customers and employees.
Conduct Regular Audits
Securing your business isn’t a one-time thing. You have to check it from time to time to recertify your security strategies. In order to figure out your strengths and weaknesses, perform various audits. These audits can come in many forms. It can be anything from a general Inspection of your security policies to trying to hack into your own network. Make a frequency of when and how you’re going to perform these tests. Don’t become stagnant in an ever-moving threat landscape, and make sure the strategies you employ are working as you intended.
Obtain Insurance
You can do everything right and still sometimes if something’s going to happen. So that’s why you have insurance! Purchase comprehensive insurance for your business, including property, liability, and cyber insurance, in case anything goes wrong.
Educate Your Employees
This is super important but also the most undermentioned one. Invest in your employees! This cannot be stated enough: your employees are the biggest reason for most business vulnerabilities out there and they’re also your biggest line of defense when it comes to your security. Train your employees regularly on benefits to following security practices from recognizing phishing emails to locking their computer when they go away. Build a resource of trust and accountability between the team members and make sure they can understand that you all are playing a vital role in protecting your business assets.
Considerations When Securing Your Business
Cost vs. Value: Security costs can be intimidating, but compare them to the potential loss risk and being protected.
Can your Security Measure Grow With You: Ensure the solutions you implement are scalable. What works for a small startup will probably be insufficient as you grow into a widely known business.
Compliance: There are a lot of regulations out there. Be sure that the steps you take are going to correspond to laws that apply to your circumstances.
Continuous Improvement: The security landscape is always changing, so keep up with what’s happening in the world of cybersecurity and physical security.
A More Secure Way Of Doing Business
A secure and snug enterprise really is just a couple of steps away. So start securing now, and let your enterprise chug along securely!
