5 Cyber Security Trends That Will Affect Your Business

Cyber security has been in the news quite often this year due to increasing cleverness of devious hackers and the rise in dangerous malware. And after Lloyd’s labeled cyber threats as the number three global business risk, every business owner is keeping a keen eye (or should be) on the current cyber security trends.

Customers and users need to trust their information will ALWAYS be secure on your site. If there’s even the slightest bit of hesitation their credentials aren’t safe, you may lose their business forever.

Important Cyber Security Trends

Below are the top five cyber security trends you and your business need to know about.

Data Breaches

In 2012, some of the most well-known brands were compromised by hackers. Over 400,000 usernames and passwords were exposed during a hack of Yahoo. Other sites affected by this breach included AOL, SBCGlobal, Verizon, Google, Hotmail, Comcast, MSN, and Live.com. Hundreds of thousands of users needed to change their password and had the security of their private information compromised.

But the worst part was the loss of trust in these brands that were supposed to be secure.

As a result, many websites (LinkedIn, Twitter, Google, etc.) have enforced two-factor authentication. It’s an extra step, but it improves the safety of your account considerably.

2013 (and beyond) can see many more of these data breaches. If your business platform has a digital crack and is exposed by a hacker, you may end up losing customers.

And they may never come back.

The Rise in Malware

Malware is the term for malicious software which is used to disturb a computer’s operation and gather information such as passwords, usernames, account information, and financial data. Malware for mobile technology, such as smart phones, has seen a tremendous rise in the past few years, making information on your phones over 600% more likely to be hacked. If mobile technology doesn’t get the essential malware patches they need to be safe, especially in Android phones, people might be less likely to use online retailers.

Social Media Hacking

Earlier this year, Burger King’s Twitter account was hacked, with the picture changed to the McDonald’s logo and strange tweets. It wasn’t the only corporate social media account to be hacked and spammed. Jeep, NBC News, USA Today, and others were all hacked, possibly damaging their brand.

If a hacker uses a business’ social media account to send out misinformation or hateful messages, the average person may never realize it was a hacker. Businesses need to worry about protecting their social media accounts since they are often the face of the business nowadays.

Web Server Mistakes

Many businesses are seeing a rise in the need for extra IT personnel. When hacking and malware are on the rise, companies need to protect usernames and passwords of their customer base with higher and more watchful security. Also, if a web server is always down then your company’s client base is less likely to execute loyalty and return to your website.

Data Breaches for Government Agencies

Government agencies saw plenty of data breaches in 2012 and early 2013. These breaches affect more than the government agencies because it can jeopardize financial records, as well as compromise bank account numbers, personal identities, passwords, and usernames.

If you aren’t aware of the cyber security trends impacting many businesses, then your company may be negatively affected as well.

Sooner than you think, too.

It’s important to keep a secure online presence at ALL TIMES. You must have user information protected 24/7 so customer loyalty will be impenetrable.