Recently, the Wall Street Journal took it upon itself to give its two cents about the problem of business computer hacking. Hacking, the paper said, could reduce businesses to their knees and destroy vital computer systems, essential for keeping operations running smoothly. No system, they said, is fool proof, meaning that malicious cybercriminals are always looking for weak points and vulnerabilities that they can exploit.

Here are some of the steps that security experts recommend businesses take to protect their IT infrastructure.

Also read: how to protect your life + business from ransomware hacking

Change Default Usernames And Passwords

The hacking community is precisely that – a community. That means that hackers quickly share data with each other and even construct elaborate databases of hacked passwords. For businesses, this is bad news. It’s almost certain that hackers will have access to default usernames and passwords, so it’s essential that these are changes as soon as a new computer is installed, according to experts. Configuring passwords should be straightforward, so do it before you start experiencing problems with your system.

Use Encryption Software To Protect Customer Financial Information

Both Mastercard and Visa offer online verification checks. Mastercard users Mastercard Secure Code. Visa uses Verified by Visa. These additional steps make it harder for hackers to just key log a customer’s card details and then use them on another site. It’s an extra layer of security which requires customers to enter random letters and numbers from their password, in much the same was as an online bank account.

But the problem is that these systems can be devilishly complicated to navigate for new businesses, especially if the lack the expertise of larger firms. The good news is that there are now far better services available that are also easier to use, including the Paypal unit from Ebay.

For companies that use a lot of data, hubstor.net suggests that they use bank grade security. This is designed to help prevent data leaks.

Limit Who Can See What

One of the cool things about modern security tech is how intelligent it has now become. Software is able to detect unusual patterns of activity on the business network and monitor a business’s outbound systems to see if data are leaking out.

One of the biggest risks that companies face is from their own employees. And so experts are now recommending that businesses shut off access to all parts of the network, except for those that individual employees need. Employees who are out of the office should be prompted to enter a second password to access restricted parts of the network, and that password should be regularly rotated to prevent unauthorized access by disgruntled former employees according to guides.wsj.com.

Update Your Operating System

Updates seem to be a constant feature of modern life. But why do we get so many of them? Mostly they aren’t to add new features. Instead, they’re bug fixes and measures to improve security. Operating systems get regular patches to eliminate vulnerabilities that make them insecure.

Use software to block spam and prevent spyware from capturing your business’s information and make sure you get alerts if the system detects an intruder.

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