It seems barely a week will go by without us hearing of another data breach, often egregious.
Protecting your devices is more complex than ever, but there are practical ways you can make sure your business stays ahead of the curve. In this guide, we’ll show you some of the most effective methods for keeping cyber attackers at bay.
Although remote and hybrid work has proven to boost productivity and satisfaction in employees, it has also increased the cyber-attack surface. According to global reports by HP:
70% of office workers admit to using their work devices for personal tasks
69% are using personal laptops or printers for work
1/3 of remote workers have let someone else use their work device
One site on the dark web that collects information lost in corporate data breaches has more than 11 billion credentials.
The good news is that you can reap the rewards of flexible work arrangements while keeping your cyber security airtight. Below are our top endpoint security tips to consider in 2023.
Ensure your backups are accurate and secure
To protect your business from data loss due to a cyber breach or accidental loss, you need reliable data backups in place. This will ensure you can recover any lost information and get your business back up and running as soon as possible. A solid backup system usually includes daily backups to a portable device and/or cloud storage, end-of-week server backups, quarterly server backups and yearly server backups.
Timely Software Updates/Patches
This one is simple, but you’d be surprised how often it’s missed (particularly in large device fleets). Make sure automatic updates are turned on across all your endpoints. Software updates often include security features that help your business keep up with the evolving cyber threat landscape. Missing these updates can cause a weakness in your endpoints that cyber attackers can use to access your network and data.
“A large percentage of data breaches that occur could have been avoided had the devices been properly patched and up to date. Using a solution like Device as a Service (DaaS) directly offsets this issue through one of its primary functions which is to manage the end-to-end lifecycle of a device fleet, including regular updates and patches.” Barry White, VCIO/Principal Consultant, Softsource vBridge
Monitoring
Tracking and analysing potential cyber security threats helps stop attackers in their tracks. To make life easier, IT teams can implement devices with built-in AI features that automatically detect and neutralise cyber threats. HP is a leader in this field with their enterprise-grade HP Wolf Security technology. Devices with HP Wolf Security for Business feature hardware-enforced threat containment that detects and isolates potential malware threats before they have a chance to access your network.
Employee Cyber Security Education
Did you know that according to Deloitte more than 90% of successful cyber-attacks start with a phishing email? On top of this, in Q1 of 2022 69% of malware isolated by HP Wolf Security had been sent via email. By educating employees and ensuring they think before they click, you can create an additional line of defence. Even simple cyber security training that teaches employees what to look out for and to check with an IT expert when something doesn’t seem right can prevent a successful breach.
AI Cyber Security Features
Choosing devices with built-in, multi-layered hardware security above and below the Operating System is a great way to gain peace of mind. Many of HP’s devices now feature cyber security such as self-healing Basic Input/Output Systems (BIOS), AI-deep learning to locate and neutralise malware and ransomware, automatic data recovery, privacy screens and facial recognition to name a few.
“CISOs have a huge list of worries – the more you can take off that list by having security built in the better. And, ultimately, humans are the biggest exploit” “This is why organisations must view security as a stack, streamlining tech and building resilience in from the hardware up to reduce the attack surface and remove the onus from the individual.” Michael Calce, HP Security Advisory Board Chairman and former hacker “MafiaBoy”
OS Software
Operating systems also play an important role in your endpoint cyber security strategy. When you’re choosing devices, make sure the OS follows secure-by-design principles. Newer operating system releases often introduce security improvements to keep up with evolving cyber threats.
Microsoft has a long-term commitment to security, creating a chain of trust across the entire hardware and software stack. The Windows 11 OS refines the security features that made the previous model so popular as well as introducing new features for enhanced protection.
Processor Security
From global enterprises to government organisations and small businesses, hardware security is critical across all industries. Processors from companies like Intel® that feature enhanced cryptography and other built-in security technology to help protect potential attack surfaces. This creates a solid foundation that drives performance and helps prevent breaches.
6 Things You Can Do Right Now to Improve Endpoint Security
When you’re juggling multiple IT projects, ensuring your business has a multi-layered endpoint security strategy in place can be hard to implement immediately. Below are some quick wins you can action to improve cyber security while you plan other more significant changes:
- Create strong passwords
- Update your software
- Enforce multi-factor authentication
- Double-down on awareness training for all employees
- Reset admin access to current employees
- Turn on spam filters
With cyber threats evolving and New Zealand businesses falling victim to security breaches, you can’t afford not to strengthen your endpoint security. If you’d like to learn more about offloading the burden with a device-as-a-service solution or Managed Endpoint Security, give one of our team a call.
June 2023
