5 Security Threats SMBs Should Not Overlook: Malicious Web Sites
As more services move into the cloud, users bring their own apps to their work environment, and we see more integration and interconnect between systems, the nature security risks and threats are changing.
This blog series looks at some of these threats, why the should be of concern to SMBs, and how SMBs can mitigate the risks.
Many small and mid-size business owners look past security threats in the belief that their businesses do not have trade secrets or other information coveted by hackers. This view is naive. Small businesses are ripe for attack because they often have personal, credit, or medical information about their customers and their employees.
Your business may at risk even if you are not a deliberate target. Hackers and thieves cast wide nets to capture personal information for identity theft. For identity theft, your business IT is no different than home computers.
Many businesses respond that they have security in place. A well managed firewall, a big name malware suite that updates periodically, and spam/virus protection for their email service.
Unfortunately, users are 20 times more likely to suffer a malware attack from a corrupted web site or a phishing attempt then through the “traditional” means of email and file transfers. While traditional malware tools may catch these types of attacks, web-based malware often behaves more like acceptable code. The recent outbreak of “crypto locker” malware, which encrypts your data and holds it for ransom, is an example of just how ineffective traditional malware prevention alone can be.
The overlooked solution to closing the web-enabled malware threat is known and simple: web filtering. Web filters not only track sites known to be risky, insecure, or containing malware, they analyze web traffic and behavior in real-time, identifying sites that may be compromised, including those hacked without the site owner’s knowledge.
For most SMBs, adding web filtering to the ecosystem is an affordable increase in IT spending, typically less than $3.00 per employee per month. Given that a single malware event can take 20 to 60 hours to mitigate at a cost of thousands of dollars, web filtering is a value-add component for most IT ecosystems.
Cumulus Global can assist in selecting a web filtering solution for your business. Please contact us, or complete the form below, for more information.
