It’s time for a spring clean!

And we don’t just mean the dust in your computer…

Recently, we’ve been asked about what people can do to keep their systems secure and working to their full potential with the recent spate of viruses and misuse of personal data.

Here’s some simple steps that you can take to ensure your business remains efficient and secure.

1. It’s not just about Anti-Virus anymore…
   Yes, you should have it as standard to protect against known nasties, but how do we protect attacks that we don’t know? Red Maple use something called Breach Protection, which monitors your computer in real time for anything that looks suspicious
2. Update update update!
   We can’t say this enough – always be updating! And this doesn’t just apply to your security and line of business software, it applies to your policies and procedures as well. Software is regularly updated once security vulnerabilities are found, so why should policies and procedures by any different? Always ensure that staff training on your policies is up to date to help deal with the threat of data breaches
3. Add layers
   There might be the odd chilly day in spring, but that’s not the layers we mean. The more security you add that compliments each other, the more secure your data is. As standard, we offer 14 layers to protect your data, but even more can be added by you – this could be physical security, policies and procedures, staff and supplier vetting and so on
4. Beware of emails
   NEVER EVER click on a link on an email that asks you to log in to somewhere. These are called phishing attacks and can harvest your details through a third-party site that looks identical to the one you think you’re using. You may have seen some emails pretending to be from your bank – well now this is also happening with Office 365 accounts. If you’re in doubt, use the web address that you’re already familiar with rather than using a link in an email. The only exception should be any password reset emails that you know you’ve specifically asked for
5. Beware of emails (part 2!)
   The same goes for attachments in emails – even if they’re from people you know. If you’re expecting any attachments through from someone, better to play it safe and check with them first
6. Have multiple passwords and keep them secure
   Please please please don’t use the same password for everything; if it’s discovered, imagine the wealth of information that can be gathered, not just about your company data, but your own and others personal data too. Make it strong by using three words and numbers, throw some capital letters and “$%$£ in there and you’re good to go
7. Secure your network
   We’ve already mentioned how we layer data protection – one of them is your network security. Do you offer guests or clients wireless access? Can you say for certain that they can’t access any information on your network? Your guest access should either be severely limited, or not given at all
8. GDPR
   We’ve tried not to mention this as everyone is probably sick of it by now, but a lot of this will go a long way to helping you comply with the requirements of GDPR. It’s a beast, but that’s a blog for another day!

If we were to say one thing above all else though… Back Up Your Data and follow the 3-2-1 rule!!

In other words, you should:

• Have at least three copies of your data
• Store the copies on two different media
• Keep one backup copy offsite

Your data is the key to your business. Without it, you won’t be able to function. If anything should ever happen, you know that you have a secure backup somewhere that you can recover from.

For more information on how Red Maple can support your IT, contact us on 0333 323 8100 email: ask[email protected] or visit: www.red-maple.co.uk