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Cyber security is important to all businesses but especially those scaling up. Businesses that don’t protect themselves as they grow can have a difficult time recovering from a cyber attack. Prioritising cyber security during business growth is essential to protect your business from threats that could hamper growth and the future of your business.
Why is scaling your IT Security important?
As your business expands, it inevitably increases your exposure to cyber attacks. The consequences of which can be devastating to a business. Even minor cyber security breaches can lead to hefty fines and the loss of customers. Add up the direct costs of attacks, information theft and disruption to trading, not to mention repairing inadequate systems and downtime, and cybercrime can mean major financial and reputational damage.
No company is too small when it comes to cyber attacks. Small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) are likely to underestimate the risk of cybercrime by believing they are not an attractive target. In fact, that’s precisely why they are. SMEs are less likely to have robust security measures in place to protect them from cyber attacks.
How can you increase IT security?
Create a culture of security
The pandemic forced many businesses to change their working practices, introducing new technology to facilitate hybrid and remote working. With these new ways of working here to stay, businesses need to ensure their employees are set up for success and security. Employees working from home may not have the same level of IT security as they have at their offices. In fact, 74% of security decision makers claim that information security systems and controls have become more complex due to widespread remote work. The good news is this also provides an opportunity to rethink strategies and embed security into the whole organisation.
Practice good cyber hygiene
Educating and training employees on cyber security is a smart place to invest and will help employees to protect your business. According to Verizon’s 2021 Data Breach Investigations Report, 85% of breaches involved the human element. As one of the biggest risks – the human factor is also one of the biggest opportunities. Training your employees to spot the signs and respond appropriately is crucial to your cyber security. Making sure best practices are being followed is key to reducing the threat of sensitive data being easily accessible and falling into the wrong hands.
Implement an Information security management system
ISO 27001 is the international Standard for Information Security Management Systems (ISMS). This industry-recognised security framework will help take your business to the next level with best practices in place to manage information security and limit the impact of threats to your business.
ISO 27001 helps your business have controls in place to combat threats to your data integrity. By having policies and procedures in place to protect and manage sensitive information, you’ll minimise risks, reduce breaches in legislation and build a culture of security.
Implementing ISO 27001 also improves overall business growth. It demonstrates to your customers you are committed to safeguarding their information and take security seriously. ISO 27001 certification can help your business grow, win more business and access new markets. Businesses with ISO 27001 are seen as safer to engage with and it is becoming increasingly common for organisations to only do business with those that can demonstrate they have a recognised IT security management system in place.
As your business grows, you need to ensure your IT scales with it. With cybercrime ever-evolving, businesses need to be ready. To see how ISO 27001 can support your business growth, contact QMS today on 0333 271 6312.
