The modern digital world, where everybody and everything are becoming increasingly connected, puts a far greater risk on the security of all businesses, increasingly sophisticated cybercrime and warfare techniques do not discriminate between large or small companies.

We all operate in a digital society, which means attacks can emanate from many fronts, indeed it may not be your organisation that is attacked first, a devasting breach may come from one or more of the companies you do business with, for examples suppliers (software and/or services) and clients will all be connected in some way to your systems.

And for small businesses, the risks associated with a successful attack can be devastating, over 43% of SMEs suffered cyber-attacks last year and it is estimated that 1.3m small businesses would fail and collapse if hit by a successful attack.

How to protect yourself in today's connected world

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) says it is vital companies stay ahead of any potential threat and they have issued a new 5-step guidance:

Step 1 – Back up your data

Step 2 – Protect your organisation from malware

Step 3 – Keep your smartphones (and tablets) safe

Step 4 – Use passwords to protect your data

Step 5 – Avoid phishing attacks

For many organisations, step 2 can be influenced most with the advancement in new technologies to combat the latest threats. Many businesses will have an anti-virus solution in place but it is evident from increasingly familiar headlines reporting successful breaches and ransomware, that organisations cannot rely on AV solutions alone.

Businesses need to assume everything is likely to be compromised at some time and look for a zero-trust, anti-malware solution that, unlike AV, doesn’t rely on historic recognition of malware code to work. Traditionally, deep defences like this have only been available to large enterprises, but now all companies including SMBs can achieve real time continuous protection against cyber threats (both today’s and future threats) from solutions such as AssurityOne.

To view the small business guide in full please click here.

The above advice has kindly been provided by LCCI Member Assurity Systems, the UK and European Distributors for AppGuard, a patented technology which will protect you from modern threats. To find out about their products or to join one of their cyber security webinars, please contact Eileen.buck@assuritysystems.co.uk