Christmas is fast approaching and many businesses are probably gearing up this week to complete work for clients, only to slow down and/or shut up shop for the festive period. With the main bank holidays falling on a weekend, many businesses will have an extended closing period as a result ...
- If you haven't done so recently, make a note to review your passwords for all your equipment and all the websites that you use online. If you use Google or any other password management site, log in and check when you last changed passwords, especially for Microsoft Office 365 and any webmail accounts. Review your Wi-Fi passwords, starting from the Wi-Fi login details to all your connected devices.
- Remember to check all your security cameras and remove all valuable equipment from sight of them and office windows. Take home any items that you can't lock away safely.
- Have you got your company back-ups? Make sure that you check that you can restore data if you back up your data to any portable USB drives and remember to take the device off-site as a precaution. The last thing you need is for your server to stop working (due to the heating being off at the office) and your business can't function when you get back!
- Set your timers for thermostats to keep room temperature so that equipment doesn't suffer the cold. Electronics like to be cool, but a frosty office is never a good thing.
- Turn off or unplug any equipment that is connected to the router or network that can be a way in for cybercriminals. Devices like Alexa and photocopiers that won't be used and are not critical don't need to be connected in my opinion.
- With more and more devices that may have been added to your network over the past 12-months, now is the time to check all the apps on your phone that control them all and if you haven't used them in the past six months, think if you really need it?
- At home, there's no doubt that you will have lots of new presents that will require an internet connection. The same precautions apply here too. Ensure you change default passwords to something more secure. Use random password generators and avoid pet's names, dates of birth or may regular passwords that you use.
- And finally, consult with your IT department or outsourced company to have a penetration test to find any potential vulnerabilities in your network.
All in all, with the ever-increasing cyber security threats, make the end of 2021 and going into 2022, the safest time with your new purchases and look after your businesses like Fort Knox.
If you feel inspired to find out more then do call me on 07555 807700 or leave a comment below and I'll be in touch as soon as I can.