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October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month and We’re Taking the Cyber out of Cyber Security

October 18, 2022
October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month and We’re Taking the Cyber out of Cyber Security

By Earl Gregorich, Co-Chair America’s SBDC Cybersecurity Task Force

Cybersecurity is a term we hear a lot these days. It brings a wide range of reactions, from fear to eye-rolls to curiosity. For small business owners and those who work in entrepreneurial circles, cybersecurity just seems expensive and too complex to tackle. But what if we removed “cyber” from the word for a moment and just thought of it as security? Security is a lot more approachable and while it still has a cost associated with it, there is a better understanding of why “security” costs are justified. So, let’s take a walk through a small business and consider how we might see a few things differently if we focused more on security and less on cyber when protecting the digital assets within the company.

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Email security tips for small businesses

June 23, 2020
Email security tips for small businesses
By: Hiscox –

Google has reported that 18 million phishing emails related to COVID-19 were identified daily during just one week in April. Many of these emails look like they come from government agencies, such as the World Health Organization, and play on the fear many people are feeling during the pandemic. Although Google says that they have AI protections in place that block roughly 99.9% of these malicious emails, they have also partnered with WHO to implement a Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance (DMARC) system to make it even harder for these types of messages to get through to Google’s users.

So what does this mean for small business owners? Now is the time to take steps to ensure your internal communications are protected. That starts with email. Use these 5 tips to make sure that your company’s email communications are protected. Click To Tweet (more…)

COVID-19 and Cyber Security

March 20, 2020
By Troy Richardson, South-West Texas Border SBDC Network –

Coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) is a respiratory illness that can spread from person to person. COVID-19 originated in China and has been declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization. As countries, states, and communities take preventive measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19, more businesses are allowing their employees to work remotely. It’s important to understand how this situation may affect your cyber security hygiene.

KEY POINTS

• As with most significant global events, cyber criminals will leverage the event against potential targets to advance or achieve a malicious goal. This is most often carried out through phishing attacks. The cyber criminals send emails claiming to be from organizations that a recipient might expect to hear from, considering the current event. For example, with the COVID-19 disease, the emails may appear to come from a government health organization such as the CDC or other health care authorities. Users should be aware of this tactic and utilize good cyber security hygiene to include: (more…)

5 Steps to Stop Small Business Cyber Crime

November 18, 2019
By John Sileo –

Cyber CrimeOn August 12, 2003, as I was just sitting down to a tea party with my daughters and their stuffed animals, the doorbell rang. Standing there when I opened the door was a big, burly special agent from the economic crimes unit at the district attorney’s office—ready to issue a subpoena for my arrest. In a calm but ominous voice, he told me I was going to be charged for electronically embezzling (hacking) $298,000 from customers of my small software company, and that the DA’s office had enough digital DNA to put me in jail for a decade.

I was the victim of cyber crime, and I should have known better. You see, earlier that year my identity was stolen and sold to a woman in Florida. This woman purchased a home, committed a number of crimes, drained my bank accounts and filed for bankruptcy—all in my name. I learned all of this one day at the bank, right before I was escorted out by security guards.

The experience of losing my money, time and dignity motivated me to protect my personal information assets with a vengeance. Unfortunately, I didn’t apply my newfound cyber vigilance to my professional life, which is how I ended up standing on my front step holding a tiny teacup and shaking like a leaf. (more…)

Cyber Safety for Small Businesses

October 28, 2019

With a whopping 30.2 million small businesses in the U.S, it’s no surprise they make up 99.9% of all United States businesses. Owning and running a business comes with a lot of added responsibility, one being the safety of employees — cyber safety included. With so many cyber threats running in the background of devices and the Internet, how can you keep your small business safe? Here are some steps to start the process.

Protect all devices

As companies hire, grow and expand, the use of devices is essential. Company devices should be properly protected before being actively used by employees. Plan to update all devices accordingly, to keep all systems working properly and efficiently use. Never forget to download antivirus software to help block any threats that can infiltrate your business. Viruses aren’t the only criminal making its way to your devices. Some other threats include: malware, ransomware, adware, pharming, phishing, and many more.

According to Candid Wueest, Principal Threat Researcher, Security Technology & Response team (STAR), Symantec Corporation, the warning signs of viruses are next to none: “Unless it is a ransomware threat that encrypts all your files, there are often no apparent clues that a computer is infected with malware. Some indications might be a 100% workload of the CPU or strange pop-up messages, but in most cases the user will only notice the consequences when people complain about strange emails, unusual logins or fraudulent transactions on payment cards.” (more…)