What do Geico, Kroger, Volkswagen, Facebook and T-Mobile have in common?
All of these brands suffered a data breach since the start of 2021.
It begs the question: If brand giants like Geico can stay in hackers’ crosshairs — despite having millions of dollars to devote to cybersecurity — where does that leave small- to mid-size businesses in the hemp and CBD space?
As hackers refine their skills and acquire more tools, there’s more low-hanging fruit than ever. That means businesses should be making changes — especially in how they store and collect data.
It’s a common myth that locally-stored data is more secure. Viruses and malware frequently compromise data on hard drives, or spread throughout network files. Even password protecting Excel spreadsheets has its limitations. According to Excel expert and author John Walkenbach:
“Worksheet protection is not a security feature. Excel uses a very simple encryption system…when you protect a worksheet with a password, that password — as well as many others — can be used to unprotect the worksheet. If someone really wants to get your data, they can. If you really need to keep your data secure, Excel is not the best platform to use."
Spreadsheets have protection mechanisms to prevent other users from accidentally tampering with or changing the content found within those spreadsheets. But it offers weak security against determined hackers.
Hackers have perfected a wealth of tools to uncover passwords. There are roughly 280 million malicious login attempts every day, including 300,000 attempted logins per hour from a single botnet, according to Akamai. With the stakes so high, and the threatscape evolving every day, businesses simply need to level up their data tracking methods.
Many businesses have turned to cloud because reputable cloud providers — like Amazon AWS and Microsoft Azure — have the power of scale, size and developer skillsets to add extra-fortified security layers to their platforms.
Security measures include:
There’s a wealth of research that shows just how problematic cybercrime has become for businesses, and why leaning on trusted cloud providers is your best bet to stay safe. Here are some stats that just scratch the surface:
The platforms and tools you use to run your daily operations not only have a profound impact on your efficiency — but also on your security.
Platforms such as KLER’s leverage the power of Microsoft Azure with features like audit trails, which help you quickly identify any changes to your data, as well as where and when they occurred. The platform also gives you defined user roles with customizable permissions, so employees only see what you want them to see. Internal data leaks (whether they’re intentional or not) are becoming more prevalent, so protective controls such as these give your business peace of mind.
We use Microsoft Azure cloud in our platform for its multi-layered security. Azure cloud is built with customized hardware, has security controls integrated into its hardware and firmware components, and added protections against threats such as DDoS. Plus, Azure is supported by 3,500 global cybersecurity experts working 24/7 to safeguard your business assets and data.
You can explore more features of the KLER platform here. As you think of ways to navigate the new era of cybercrime, remember that data is the lifeblood of your business, and making small changes can make a big difference.