How to stay ahead of cybersecurity issues and keep your customers’ data safe

Cybersecurity is becoming a constant concern for businesses all over the world. You need to take extra precautions as a business owner to make sure your customers’ data is safe and secure at all times.

To find out how you can protect your customers’ sensitive information and stay in touch with the latest cybersecurity issues, I asked a panel of entrepreneurs from YEC the following question:

What’s one way your company stays abreast of the latest cybersecurity issues, concerns and changes in order to make sure you’re doing everything you can to protect your data?

Their best answers are below:

1. Work with a security consultant

I work with a security consultant throughout the year to stay on top of what is going on and to go through an extensive review and training process for my team. – John Rampton, Calendar

2. Hire a CSO

Hiring or outsourcing a chief security officer (CSO) is a good way to ensure that you are on top of your security. It can also be a good idea to have someone from your IT team take on this challenge and designation.  – Nicole Munoz, Start Ranking Now

3. Think strategically and plan ahead

Everyone takes action to prevent attacks, but companies also should create incident response teams, which should include people in operations, compliance, legal and communications. When putting a team together, they should consider what service providers, such as credit monitoring firms and forensic providers, they will call to assist if a major cyber breach occurs. – Blair Thomas, eMerchantBroker

4. Stay connected with experts

There are so many online sources to regularly read, including cybersecurity trade publications. Also, there are more experts speaking at conferences to stay in touch with. – Serenity Gibbons, Naacp

5. Follow the industry leaders

Following industry leaders by subscribing to their newsletters always keeps us abreast of the latest trends and news in cybersecurity. To our benefit, we’ve implemented much of what we’ve learned. We have also taken outside precautions by getting an insurance policy in case there is a breach. Our software and cloud hosting companies also send us newsletters on the latest security issues. – Jared Ross Weitz, United Capital Source Inc.

6. Read, listen, watch

We encourage all our employees to devote time to keep themselves updated about the latest in the world of cybersecurity by reading articles, listening to podcasts and watching videos. The Risky Business podcast, for instance, discusses the latest threats such as NetSpectre, ERP attacks, ransomware and malvertising. – Derek RobinsonTop Notch Dezigns

7. Invest in a cybersecurity system

It is impossible to spend all of your valuable time monitoring your data. The best way to keep it all secure is to invest in a cybersecurity system that will monitor and alert you of any type of data breach. – Chris Quiocho, Offland Media

8. Attend tech conferences and hackathons

Sending your IT team to tech conferences and hackathons is a great way to stay up to date on the latest security developments and concerns. These events will often host speakers and workshops built around learning new techniques and identifying vulnerabilities in common security systems. If you can afford to do the same, I highly recommend it. – Bryce Welker, Crush The PM Exam

9. Keep an eye on the press

Nowadays, there is a lot of press about these security issues, so we take note to learn about any that surface in the media. This helps us to keep up to date with the security issues that are relevant and then, in the process of learning about the issues, we’re able to address any gaps that might open us up to risk. – Baruch Labunski, Rank Secure

10. Invest in a cybersecurity employee

Chances are, managing your cybersecurity on top of your long to-do list is near impossible. Most business owners lack the time and knowledge to do this effectively. I’ve invested in bringing on a part-time employee to help make sure we are on top of all the latest and greatest security and tech systems. – Leila Lewis, Be Inspired PR

11. Store data on the cloud

Transferring your data to the cloud is an undervalued way of protecting yourself due to the belief that it can be hacked. However, most hacks come from user errors, and the cloud is forced to adhere to the latest cybersecurity standards. This means SSL encryptions, notifications of possible breaches, automatic data backups and consistent updates. – Reuben Yonatan, GetVoIP

12. Turn to mentors

In addition to my own research, I consult my mentors when it comes to cybersecurity. Getting their expertise on the topic, as well as advice on how to advance, has helped us stay ahead of the curve. – Adrien Schmidt, Bouquet.ai

13. Keep a cybersecurity team on retainer

Our business is not big enough to hire a full-time cybersecurity team member, yet we depend on technology enough so that, should we be hacked or our systems breached, we could suffer irreversibly. As a result, we maintain a cybersecurity team on retainer. This company continually monitors our systems for cyberthreats and runs a quarterly ‘hack test’ where they attempt to break into our systems. – Diego Orjuela, Cables & Sensors

14. Have a great IT partner

The reality is that cybersecurity is a vast topic covering every aspect of your organization — from the software systems to internal infrastructure and, most importantly, the behavior of your employees and partners. Hire a partner or two to assist in security. There are thousands of great consultants and service providers who live and breathe IT security. Engage with two of them to ensure you have different points of view and approaches covered. – Daniel Reilly, B2X Global

15. Make it a company-wide effort

Instead of having one team dedicated to all things cybersecurity, make it a company-wide effort. When each team owns a piece of protecting the company by keeping an eye on cybersecurity news and developments relevant to their field, the company can stay better informed about potential issues in a holistic way. – Ryan D Matzner, Fueled