Should SMBs Invest in Cybersecurity?

Implementing proactive cybersecurity measures to protect private data, people, and networks is crucial for every organization regardless of size. While the large enterprise level data breaches are the ones the make the headlines, cyber criminals do not discriminate and will target small and large businesses alike. In 2021 alone, 61% of SMBs were the target of a cyber-attack.  This means that no organization, regardless of size, flies under the radar of cyber criminals and every business must invest in cybersecurity. 

Why Target SMBs?

SMBs are targeted for several reasons and are often preferred to attacking larger organizations. For starters, SMBs traditionally have less access to cybersecurity resources, tools, and solutions. These solutions can be too expensive and hard to justify for smaller organizations. While it may be feasible to protect a few devices or endpoints, organization wide security is often costly. In the event that an SMB is able to afford these solutions, the expertise required for correct implementation is often lacking.

Many SMBs do not have a full IT staff to maintain and monitor the security posture of their organization, which leaves devices unpatched and gaps wide open, CorpInfoTech can help with MSP or co-managed service provider. Cyber criminals are aware of these facts and will often target SMBs knowing that their defense is lacking. 

Additionally, many SMBs offer their services to larger businesses or have a contract with the federal government. These small businesses may have external access to an enterprises network meaning that if breached, they are a potential foothold into a much bigger victim. SMBs that are contracted by the federal government may also have access to classified or otherwise sensitive information that criminals would love to exfiltrate and sell to other parties. This makes SMBs lucrative targets that are relatively simple to compromise.

CorpInfoTech offers managed compliance services across various industries to ensure organizations are able to achieve and maintain compliance. We are able to help implement the controls required by CMMC, NIST 800-171, DFARS, HIPAA, and FINRA/SEC. 

What Should SMBs Do?

Some of the most effective defenses against cyber criminals are also some of the most practical. If your organization is looking for a starting point, here are several practices you can implement to level the playing field: 

• Security Awareness Training: Your employees can be your greatest asset of your biggest threat. Educating users on the most common attacks they'll face on the internet and creating a security culture that has a vested interest in protecting sensitive data goes a long way.
• Secure Password Guidelines: Ensure that every user is practicing secure password hygiene. This means making sure users aren't reusing passwords across multiple applications, using personal information in their passwords, or sharing passwords. You should also implement multi-factor authentication (MFA) to provide an alternate form of authentication.
• Implement Strong Backups: In the even that data is stolen, lost, or corrupted your organization should backup important data to ensure minimal losses. This will help reduce downtime in the event of a data breach or business disaster. 
• Ensure Remote Workers are Protected: As hybrid work models become more commonplace, it's important to protect users and data that may be present outside of the organizations internal network. Make sure your employees are connecting to VPN's or VDI's to provide an extra layer of security when they are on the move. 

CorpInfoTech - A Trusted MSP

Many SMBs will opt to enlist the help of a managed service provider (MSP) to handle their IT and security needs. An MSP provides access to enterprise level resources, tools, and expertise in an affordable model for small businesses. As an MSP, we offers a variety of services to protect SMBs including firewall management, vulnerability management, security assessments, and managed compliance. CorpInfoTech services adapt to your unique business needs and can be offered in both a fully and co-managed model. Our IT staff can come alongside your existing team and offer support, or we can be your team. We offer 24x7 monitoring and are ready to support your businesses whenever the need arises. 

We serve various industries and adapt our solutions to address industry specific needs and risk. For those organizations that must comply with regulatory requirements, CorpInfoTech can help your business achieve and maintain compliance. We support NIST 800-171, CMMC, HIPAA, FINRA/SEC, and DFARS requirements. 

CorpInfoTech also prides itself in being externally validated by several of the leading cybersecurity accreditation bodies including CREST for the CIS Controls and the Cyber AB for CMMC. To learn more about how CorpInfoTech can secure your SMB, contact us today!

CorpInfoTech  (Corporate Information Technologies) provides small to mid-market organizations with expert I.T. services, including security assessment, cybersecurity penetration tests, managed services (MSP), firewall management, and vulnerability management. CorpInfoTech can help organizations, quantify, create, refine, and mitigate the risks presented by business threatening disasters in whatever form they may be disguised.