7 Effective Ways to Prevent Data Breaches

Data breaches have since time immemorial been an online merchant’s worst nightmare. Enterprises have lost millions of dollars due to rising data breaches. This post will provide you with seven of the most effective methods to prevent data breaches.

It is quite affordable for anyone who would want to own and secure ecommerce websites. Data breaches have been known to cripple large organizations. They are so bad that chances of getting back on your toes are negligible. Read through:

1. Conducting regular audits on security stature

These audits reveal so much. They show the state of preparedness in the unfortunate event you suffer a data breach. They also show if you are complying with the government protocols in preventing these attacks for online businesses or organizations.

Additionally, these audits help you revisit your security and log monitoring setups. They also seek to find out if you have network security mechanisms ready. Such may include firewalls.

There is so much that these security audits help unearth, and you cannot afford not to carry them out because they will assess the level of preparedness in case you suffer an attack.

2. Train your staff on safe cyberspace practices

There are so many laws about cyber security. They are both international and those at the national level. Your employees need to be conversant with all of these so they can effectively prevent a data breach.

Your employees are at the forefront of the war against cyber theft. They are your frontline soldiers, so you should equip them with the relevant skills. Some of the things you need to train them on is:

• How to curate unique passwords on their user accounts
• Importance of reporting suspicious online activity
• How to maintain a sound document system

3. Have an SSL certificate

Having an SSL certificate is a must-have for ecommerce sites if you want to get a good search engine ranking. They give you a list of merits if you use them to encrypt your websites. In recent times, most search engines have started marking websites without these certificates as unsafe. They tell visitors not to visit those pages, and this can spell disaster if you are an ecommerce store depending on your website.

If you wish to secure unlimited sub domains, then wildcard SSL certificate is best among all. Most ecommerce sites have multiple sub domains. This single certificate enough to secure your site and all its sub domains. . This means you save more.

4. Have in place an asset inventory

Knowing what software and hardware are at your networks’ disposal and keeping tabs on each of them is the first step in preventing a cyber-attack. Further, you need to assess each of them and discover the weakest point in preventing any attack.

This will provide you with a better understanding of the state of preparedness your security system has. You also need to set up categories and ratings around the threats that your assets may encounter.

This will help you get a clearer picture of your weak points.

5. Limit access to sensitive data

It is always wise to limit the people who have access to the valuable data you own. The fewer people have clearance, the better for you. It is because you do not know who is on your side. After all, what is the use of a mailroom employee gaining access to important accounting information?

This is necessary if you want to reduce the pool of people who view a document and reduce the chances of an employee clicking on a malicious link. It is just common sense.

6. Carry out updates on software

Carrying out updates is a simple task that often does not require much expertise. However, many people tend to overlook the importance of updates. They contain the latest version of every function, including the security aspect of the software.

Hackers will look for the weakest point to breach your website, and they might find a loophole in an old version of anti-virus software you are using.

Microsoft has recently unveiled a new program called Baseline Security Analyzer. It runs scans on all software you are using and tells you which one to update.

7. Ensure all third-party vendors comply

Many companies outsource merchandise from third parties. They are often a weak security link, and they can prove to be disastrous if not properly managed. You must curate a protocol for all third parties to comply with, failure to which there will be consequences. If the third parties must access your sensitive data, make sure they maintain a certain level of transparency while conducting their business.

Wrapping up

An SSL certificate will save you the trouble of having to go through a data breach. The chances of getting through one successfully are quite slim. You should also remember to limit the number of people getting access to your valuable data. This is a good tip. Your employees are your frontline soldiers; they either make you or break you. Give training on cyber security awareness.

Only technical measure are not enough. Taking the support of eCommerce Development Company who has the avid active back-end and front-end support developers with profound expertise in dealing with various security aspects of any online storefront irrespective of the multiple ecommerce platforms can also help to cope up with eCommerce security threat.

Dipika Jadwani

Dipika is a skilled marketer who manages marketing communications at MobiCommerce. From content and social media to branding and PR, Dipika overlooks all aspects of digital marketing meticulously at MobiCommerce. She collaborates extensively with the sales and operations teams to bring more business and build a loyal customer base.