Is Your Small Business Prepared For a Data Breach?

Data breach prevention should be a high priority for small business owners. Many large businesses with top-notch protocols in place suffer, so the cost for small businesses who experience infiltration of this sort is hit a lot harder. Cyber thieves usually target businesses that don’t take data protection that seriously. The resulting damage that could occur could be devastating. No matter how small your business is, it’s important to be prepared for a data breach.

Data Breach Prevention

Data protection is very important. Having the right document destruction protocols in place will help in preventing breaches and suspicious activity. A single breach can cost up to $3.6 million globally, financially crippling small businesses from ever recovering. Companies often circumvent data privacy issues and do not consider the value of appropriate document destruction. Here are a few things small businesses should note:

• Information put in the trash means anyone can access it. Once a business discards proprietary and sensitive information in this manner, there is no protection of the data.
• Some states have mandatory protocols that must be followed. Knowing what the regulatory agencies require is key when you are doing business with sensitive information.

Knowing the common causes of a data breach can help:

• Employees clicking on phishing emails
• Losing devices
• Sharing passwords
• Leaving devices unsecured

These data breaches can be prevented by using encryption software, updating software as soon as updates come out, using strong passwords and strong authentication protocols, giving everyone data security training, enforcing all policies.

Data Privacy and Shredding

Data breach recovery can be costly. In fact, in 2020, an average of $5.01 million was associated with breaches dealing with business email. In 2021, small businesses with less than 500 employees will experience data breach costs of $2.98 million on average. Additionally, 47% of these breaches are found within days. It can be difficult dealing with employing endpoint security protection, but one of the best ways to get started on putting things in place is by partnering with a shredding company that understands the importance of safety in getting rid of sensitive data.

How do small businesses get over data breaches?
There are a few steps to take:

• Locate the source of the breach and how much of the data was infiltrated
• Address the breach as soon as possible
• Test your security fixes
• Inform the authorities and any customers that were affected
• Prepare to clean up after the breach and employ damage control methods
  

Contact Shred America

When you’re working with a reputable shredding company, they will help you establish a data breach prevention policy that includes every aspect of data privacy including hard drive destruction, onsite and offsite shredding for one-time or scheduled shredding services. Mobile shredding services can also help your small business if you have large volumes of documents that need to be destroyed on a consistent basis.

Every industry has protocols to follow. A shredding company that is certified in document destruction ensures all your data is well taken care of. Take care of your small business the right way and protect your customers and employees. For more information on data protection and privacy practices, contact the team at Shred America to assist today!