When you have a website for your business, it is more than just a digital storefront.
It is the first point of contact for customers with your brand. If you offer services online (such as booking haircuts) or sell products, it is also the space where customers are expected to share personal information and to assess whether or not they trust you. In the last two years, security threats have evolved quickly, and even the best websites can slip into vulnerable territory.
So, if it’s been a while since you assessed the security of your business site, read on, as here, the signs that you need an update on your cybersecurity will be explored.
You Have Basic Security
Starting with the most obvious, most website platforms will come with some kind of encryption. However, thanks to AI attacks, it is rarely enough on its own. You should seek to set up multi-factor authentication for all staff who have access to sensitive data, as well as biometric scans. To help protect your website from attacks 24/7, you should set up MDR, or Managed Detection Response, to alert you and prevent hacks. If you have never heard of MDR, check out the Red Canary guide on choosing the best security option for your site.
Your Website is Unstable
Contrary to popular belief, security issues on our website don’t always show up as flashing warnings. They can be subtle, such as slow loading times, sudden crashes, or even unusual spikes in traffic. All of these can be the early signs of malware, bot attacks, or even hackers probing your site for weaknesses. Even if the issue is something simple, such as poor hosting, slow performance will affect trust and conversions of those who visit your site. If this sounds familiar, you need to conduct a security audit to help you assess and identify the real cause and isolate it, even if it is not a security risk. Sites that load slowly have worse search engine optimisation, or SEO, which could be stopping customers from seeing your website.
You Don’t Have Multi-Factor Authentication
Can the admin area of your website be accessed with one password? If the answer is yes, and it’s a password that’s been reused multiple times, this means you and all of your client or customer data are an easy target for hackers.
Modern security standards call for stronger controls, especially if you or your team work remotely or with a hybrid model that will require the use of multiple devices. You can ensure higher levels of security by adding multi-factor authentication. This is one of the fastest and cheapest ways you can protect your site. If your website, platform, or hosting dashboard doesn’t support this option, you need to get a new domain, as your security stack is outdated.
You Don’t Regularly Back Up Your Website
Many business owners assume that their website is being automatically backed up. That is, until they need to do a backup and realise that this option doesn’t exist. Those who run a business online need to note that backups aren’t only for cyberattacks. It might be that an update on your website breaks something, plug-ins may conflict, and someone on your staff may delete an important page on the site, which needs to be backed up. Backups that aren’t automated can lead to an access point on your website for hackers, so make sure everything is backed up in the event that the page goes down, so you won’t need to rebuild the page from scratch.
Also Read : What is a Dedicated Server, and When do you need one?
