Many small businesses have a lot on their plates whenever it comes to keeping the lights on, the doors open, and the orders filled. With the stress of running a small business, whether from a kitchen table or a warehouse, there are a lot of things you need to juggle, and one of those key aspects is your security.
With cyber attacks and cyber crime on the rise, and targeting small businesses, the ability to keep your data safe is becoming more important than ever, and it is something every small business needs to add to its plate to keep everything safe.
Small businesses run on data, and they often have data that is just as important as other businesses… but they don’t have the security that big business does and that can make them huge targets for those seeking to steal the data.
Here’s what your small business needs to know about keeping everything safe.
Focus On Digital Access Control
Much like how you likely have areas of your business that are off limits to the public whenever they enter your storefront, you need to have that same thinking on the web.
Access control online restricts who can have access to your personal information on the web, and who can have access to the files, devices, and resources that contain personal information. Access control is all designed around minimizing risk to your business by making sure you know who has access to what.
This helps to keep your business secure and also goes hand in hand with IT security. Don’t use the honor system or assume that you know who has access to what because that will leave your business wide open to data breaches and thefts from people who don’t care about those rules.
However, having a system set up for access control can give you complete peace of mind and protect your data from those with malicious intent. If you can see and monitor who has access to your data, you stand a much greater chance of catching someone who shouldn’t have access to your data.
How To Keep Your Payments Secure
Small businesses must focus on keeping their payments secure. While being paid through public platforms like PayPal and other digital marketplaces is fantastic, eventually, you will want to step up your business security. Especially if your business is dealing with a lot of money with each payment.
For example, you can use other digital wallets to make your payments, especially those digital wallets that have biometric pay. While biometrics are not going to be foolproof, they can be extremely secure as they rely on a fingerprint, facial recognition, or iris recognition before a payment can be made.
Payment methods with two-factor authentication, which have you complete two tasks before any payment can go through, might seem like a hassle from your end. However, whenever someone attempts to access your payment, they might be able to complete one task, but they will have trouble completing two.
Then you will be notified that someone is trying to access your account and you will be able to make the changes necessary to secure it.
Connect Everything With A SaaS Platform
If you want to make sure every single payment access is shepherded under one umbrella, you need to use a SaaS (software as a service) platform to make it so! A good platform will allow you to manage and secure everything that is on the cloud right into your app. A good platform will also have effective IGA tools to automate access and other security issues. Once again it gives you peace of mind and makes sure that you can focus on all the other aspects of your business.
Finding the correct SaaS platform that is going to support your needs and ensuring that you are prepared to take on the potential dangers that can affect a small business should be a task that your business takes seriously.
Verify Every Payment Transaction
Another great way to make sure that your payments are secure (which also doubles as a way to make sure you have one eye on the money at all times) is to verify every payment transaction that occurs through e-commerce.
Validating phone numbers and email addresses so you can contact the customer if a problem occurs, or matching the billing address for address verification can all be great ways to make sure every payment transaction is legal and works for your business.
Using a personal verification system such as having customers make an account, or having your customers verify their identity with photographs of their Category B or Category CE driver’s license and other ID can also be extremely helpful to make sure everything is secure.
Focus On Security Even If You Don’t Think You Need It
Finally, don’t be afraid to put emphasis on security, even if you think your small business doesn’t need it. Many small businesses don’t think they need security until they get their data stolen and held for ransom or have a data leak and then have to spend months rebuilding everything from scratch.
It’s better to just focus on keeping your business secure from the start, so make sure that your small business’s security is just as amazing as all the other parts of your small business!
