E-Commerce Security Threat -What Do You Need to Know | Infographic
Read what do you need to know about E-commerce security threats
Cyber-crime is one of the most devastating crimes that destroy businesses by depriving them of their confidential data and customers.
Criminals are exploiting the Internet to conduct various crimes such as phishing, hacking, identity theft, virus dissemination, to name a few.
Read what do you need to know about E-commerce security threats.
3 Safety Concerns With Cloud Data Storage
Here are all the safety concerns that cloud data storage addresses to give consumers a safe place to store data.
Entrusting a third-party with personal data and sensitive information sounds a bit risky. This is primarily why cloud storage was received skeptically by a lot of users.
Even though this technology made waves in the industry, it still concerns many about how reliable and trustworthy it is.
In spite of hackers trying to dissuade consumers from accepting this innovation, cloud storage has emerged as by far the most reliable data storage facility.
Its popularity is not baseless. Here are all the safety concerns that cloud data storage addresses to give consumers a safe place to store data.
How Could Apple’s iCloud Be Hacked If the Cloud Is So Secure?
Polls showed that the popularity of cloud storage fell by a large margin when Apple’s iCloud was attacked. Private pictures of 26 renowned celebrities were stolen from their respective accounts. The stolen pictures were of a highly sensitive nature and violated the privacy of 26 individuals! This raised hue and cry among the public and consumers as they started doubting the security of cloud storage.
However, media played a great role in manipulating the news and compromising the credibility of cloud storage. What deadlines didn’t tell was that the cloud’s security wasn’t compromised actually. It was the weakness of Apple’s password security which enabled hackers to use guesswork to intrude in the privacy of others. The reality in fact was that the cloud was not compromised.
How Is The Cloud Secured
Encryption is the key through which cloud keeps all the data secured. Difficult algorithms are used to encrypt data and keep information protected. Encrypted data cannot be accessed without deciphering the code first.
In order to decode the encrypted messages, the hacker would require the encryption key. Without immense computer processing, a heavy software, and power, the data cannot be decrypted.
It’s true that data in cloud storage is not 100% safe; it’s still better and more secure than data that’s locally protected. This is because the data in cloud is locked under complex security parameters that can’t be devised easily by an ordinary computer user.
What Can We Do To Keep Our Data Safe?
Protecting sensitive information and keeping it safe is as much your responsibility as it is your storage provider’s.
Using the same pass code for multiple platforms alerts cyber criminals to try a hand at accessing your personal data.
It’s equally important to include symbols, numbers and letters to make your password as complex and hard to crack as possible. Passwords should also not contain personal information like names, dates of birth, ages, contacts or addresses. If a hacker knows you personally, he/she might even have all these personal details saved so you’re paving way for your own loss.
Planning to switch to cloud data storage for better safety?
Lean Security manages security and offers various IT solutions to online businesses. We’re the only firm which communicates laterally with customers and answers all their IT needs.
Our aim is to keep your web applications up and running without needing to worry about them. From web application penetration testing, to website security testing and mobile app security, we’ll handle everything IT for you. If you need us, contact here.
Understanding the Importance of Cloud Security
In this blog, we highlight a few key reasons why having cloud-based security is important for your organization.
Perhaps the most important asset of any organization after its employees is its business data. With the cost of data breaches estimated to be around $3.86 million, business owners are looking towards cloud security as an effective protection mechanism against cyber attacks.
In this blog, we highlight a few key reasons why having cloud-based security is important for your organization.
Centralized Security
Similar to how cloud computing centralizes data and applications, cloud security provides centralized protection. Cloud-based networks consist of numerous endpoints and devices. Managing these networks allows for enhanced traffic analysis, fewer policy and software updates, and streamlines the monitoring of events. Disaster recovery plans are also easy to implement and put into effect in case of an emergency.
Scalability
The IT needs of any company depend on the size of its operations. A small start-up won’t have the same requirements as a large enterprise with thousands of employees. Cloud solutions enable organizations to efficiently scale up or down depending on their business demands.
Such demands can fluctuate based on a number of external factors and an increase doesn’t require a company to exhaust resources on increasing or upgrading its physical infrastructure.
This level of flexibility and agility grants organizations a considerable competitive edge over those that don’t utilize cloud computing.
Loss Prevention
For businesses that have yet to invest in cloud security, all their data lies in their office computers and face the constant risk of corruption, hardware malfunctioning, human errors, and viruses. They’re also at risk of internal theft.
Cloud security mitigates any such risks as the data is transferred onto the cloud and can be accessed from any computer with an internet connection.
Automatic Software Updates
With older legacy systems, software updates are long and tedious. They can put a halt to business operations resulting in wasted opportunities. Cloud-based applications are refreshed and updated themselves and save an organization from resources it has to spend on manual, company-wide updates as well as IT consultation costs. 50% of businesses reported less spending on internal IT resources after they adopted cloud security.
Disaster Recovery
Maintaining control of business operations is a key ingredient for achieving long-term success. Unfortunately, despite organizations best efforts, there’ll always be certain processes and factors beyond their control.
Downtimes result in lost revenue, productivity, and negatively affect the brand image. Cloud security provides fast data recovery for a wide range of possible scenarios ranging from power outages to natural disasters in a matter of a few hours.
Effective cloud-based solutions allow organizations to conduct business without worrying about security threats which may result in data loss. Our secure cloud managed hosting will save you from all the drawbacks of having to rely on an on-premises infrastructure. Contact us today!
The Differences between Penetration Tests, Audits, and Security Assessments
In this blog, we highlight the main differences between penetration tests, audits, and security assessments.
With the number of data breaches at an all time high, it’s no wonder businesses are expanding their security budget and seeking newer and improved ways of protecting their digital assets. Every day the headlines talk about a certain company that has suffered from a security breach.
Organizations are taking a proactive approach towards bolstering their defences against potential threats. However, there seems to be some confusion regarding terminologies which often suffer from misrepresentation and are generally misunderstood.
In this blog, we highlight the main differences between penetration tests, audits, and security assessments.
Audits
A major misunderstand is when people believe audits to be some form of a security assessments. An audit is definitely not a penetration test and is more of a check-box activity that ensures a company is in line with the compliance standards of the industry it operations in with regards to organizational structures, technology, internal processes, etc.
Simply put, audits help in identifying whether certain components are found within an organization but they don’t help in testing their effectiveness. While compliance does play a crucial role in maintaining a strong organizational framework, it doesn’t demonstrate the effectiveness of the security system if it does come under attack.
Penetration Tests
Breaches occur when the vulnerabilities within a system are exploited in order to gain access. The main goal then becomes to gain administrative access, which essentially allows the infiltrators to gain access to critical and sensitive information.
Penetration tests are done to gauge the strength of a company’s security systems. Similar to healthcare professionals, the tools and skills of the testers will determine the value of their services. This process is also time consuming when it comes to explaining results to the management who’s final decision hinges on the effective explaining of security vulnerabilities.
Security Assessments
This is the process in which operating systems, application software, and network devices are scanned to identify the presence of unknown and known vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities are signified by a weakness, error or gap within the system and security design. Exploitation of such gaps allow for unauthorized access, denial of services, and an escalation of privileges.
Security assessments go so far as to identify the vulnerabilities without executing an attack as conducted during penetration tests. It outlines the potential risks to a system and highlights possible corrective measures. Security assessments can be carried out using a number of tools based on operating systems, system types, open ports for communications, etc.
These assessments represent a valuable tool for identifying the areas that require attention and future investment.
Understanding the difference between these terminologies and their importance can play a key role in defensive your business from future attacks that can possibly lead to significant financial losses. Our penetration testing services and network vulnerability assessment will ensure your online business processes and transactions remain risk-free. Contact us today!
Simple Security Vulnerabilities Putting Your Business at Risk
In this blog, we take a look at a few security vulnerabilities your business should avoid.
Despite the fact that nearly 31% of business organizations have experienced a cyber attack on their operational technology infrastructure, most companies still don’t have proper security measures in place to counter the increasingly sophisticated cyber attacks. While security vulnerabilities can’t be completely mitigated, businesses must implement certain measures that help to reduce the possibility of disaster.
In this blog, we take a look at a few security vulnerabilities your business should avoid.
Uninformed Employees
The risk posed by a careless employee is the same as someone who intentionally passes on information to competitors. Employees should be trained in the best security practices otherwise visiting unauthorized websites, having weak passwords, and clicking on suspicious links is likely to occur, which poses a security threat to the employers’ data.
Training employees as well as offering continuous support will allow them to protect themselves and the business’s data. By holding workshops that highlight the dangers of hacking by means of key-loggers and phishing scams, employees will have all the resources they need.
People on every level of management should be encouraged to keep complicated passwords with symbols and numbers and have them changed after 2 to 3 months. Encryption also helps in adding an extra layer of security and multifactor authentication such as RFID, fingerprint readers, and retina scanning protects sensitive data even if the passwords have been compromised.
Third-Party Service Providers
The evolution in technology has forced businesses to outsource IT management operations to third parties that offer increased levels of protection and efficiency.
It’s important to note that while they may offer a better security infrastructure as compared to an organization’s in-house capability, they may not be adhering to the best security practices. For example, many such service providers assign the same password to multiple clients. If a hacker manages to get that password, they instantly gain access to multiple security networks.
The threat is further exacerbated due to a lack of vetting process performed by the company seeking to hire any third party security service providers. While most security service providers do a fairly good job at keeping critical information safe from viruses and malware, not much attention is paid to internal system segmentation. This means that if a less secure system is hacked, it’s much easier to gain privileges and move onto other systems.
Criminal Activity within the Organization
Rogue employees represent one of the main threats when it comes to data breaches. For example, a member of the IT department already has access to the data centre and networks and can cause considerable damages. It’s important to keep a log of privileged account activity and conduct quick responses to any suspicious activities.
Overlooking simple vulnerabilities can lead to massive damages for a business. Our network vulnerability assessment ensures that your business is protected from all types of security threats, big or small. Contact us today!